Nexans has completed a six-year project to design, manufacture, supply and install approximately 100 kilometres of subsea high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable and accessories for Nalcor Energy’s Strait of Belle Isle Marine Cable Crossing in Newfoundland and Labrador.
The project, which now connects Labrador with the island of Newfoundland, reached its conclusion when the final 2.3 kilometre length of cable was delivered, providing a spare ready for use.
“The Strait of Belle Isle project was a major operation that called on our highly skilled people in a wide range of areas and especially the marine and onshore installation,” said Peggy Aasheim, Nexans project manager for the Strait of Belle Isle project. “One of our greatest challenges in this remote area was the sea ice as well as dense fog and cold weather. It is a tribute to Nexans’ engineering and installation capability that the project has been completed safely and successfully.”
The 350 kV HVDC cables used for the project are based on Nexans’ mass-impregnated design. They include three lengths of submarine cables with an integrated fibre-optic element together with underground cables that were used for the land connections at either side of the strait.
The accessories comprise joints, spares and terminations. The subsea cables were installed in water depths of up to 110 m by Nexans’ own installation vessel, the C/S Nexans Skagerrak.
The spare cable is being stored on a spool held on the Corner Brook waterfront on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland.
The Strait of Belle Isle Marine Cable Crossing is a key element in the overall Lower Churchill Project, which includes construction of an 824 MW hydroelectric generating facility and more than 1,600 km of transmission lines across the province.
The 350 kV HVDC cables were manufactured by Nippon High Voltage Cable Corporation, Nexans’ facility in Tokyo, Japan.
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