Nexans wins cable contract for London Array wind farm

Nexans had closed a €100 million contract to provide underwater cables for the world’s biggest offshore wind farm that is being built in the UK. The cable maker will install four cables, each measuring up to 54kms, to link the UK’s electric grid to London Array wind farm – developed by a consortium of utilities DONG Energy and E.ON, alongside green energy group Masdar.

After uncertainties over the financing of the wind farm, the consortium this year committed to put in €2.2 billion for the first phase of the London Array project. An estimated 175 wind turbines with a capacity of 630MW will start producing power by 2012. The second phase of the project is expected to raise the wind farm’s capacity to 1,000MW.

Earlier, Nexans had also won a €39 million contract to supply subsea power cables for the first phase of Belgium’s Belwind offshore wind farm project. Located on the Bligh Bank, 46kms off Zeebrugge’s coast, the project will transmit power to some 165,000 homes in the country.

Yvon Raak, Senior Corporate Executive Vice President of Nexans, claimed that the company has various experiences on the installation of power cables for wind farm projects.

Nexans will supply and install 52kms of 170KV high voltage power cables to Belwind wind farm project’s contractor, Van Oord Dredging & Marine Contractors. The cable company will connect the wind farm, comprising of 55 turbines that could generate a capacity of 165MW, to the Belgian power grid network. The cable installation is scheduled for next year’s summer, with the wind farm to be operational by 2011.