Power transmission: the way to a more sustainable future

Renewable energies depend on natural energy sources whose availability varies with weather conditions. This temporality has an impact on production, pushing it up or down. To address this constraint, our interconnections link up national power grids, providing a sustainable solution for managing surpluses and shortages.

We believe that it is essential for countries to form alliances, and we are proud to be involved in major power transmission projects with a positive impact on the lives of millions of people.

We are involved in historic projects. In particular, our company deployed the NordLink interconnector linking the German and Norwegian grids. We are also working on the Great Sea Interconnector, a project to connect Cyprus to Greece. These are just a few of our achievements in promoting the smart transmission and distribution of renewable energies.

European initiatives and intra-country partnerships foster greater cooperation and allow these projects to become a reality. These comprehensive, sustainable solutions play an effective role in meeting the global objective of zero carbon emissions by 2050.

For the purposes of these ambitious initiatives, Nexans adapts its cable system designs, transportation and installation methods to the complexity of each project, bringing together the world’s leading energy players to address key energy issues.

What do we mean by power transmission?

The power transmission network is made up of high-voltage subsea and land interconnections, linking power grids and sharing electricity between continents, regions and countries.

Interconnected grids help to regulate energy markets, to give more people access to electricity and to meet energy demand as part of a sustainable approach. One example is the Celtic Interconnector. We are taking part in this project, whose purpose is to link the French and Irish electricity grids, thereby increasing the energy independence of both countries while reducing their emissions.

To limit the risk of blackouts, interconnections link up different types of power grids using a variety of energy mixes. They contribute to integrating more renewable energies into the grids, while compensating for the intermittent nature of solar and wind power.

Challenges associated with power and electricity transmission

• Meet growing electricity needs, with demand expected to rise by 40% over the next two decades.
• Provide practical solutions for cross-border transmission between national power grids.
• Develop and implement cable systems with the efficiency to transmit electricity over long distances and with limited energy losses.
• Overcome technical, regulatory and installation obstacles to unlock the potential of interconnected cable networks and build a sustainable energy future.

Nexans solutions

• We provide turnkey solution for interconnexions, where we engineer, manufacture, transport, install and protect HV subsea and land cables
• We develop a comprehensive and innovative range of power transmission solutions and services to meet changing demand while minimizing the total cost of ownership (TCO).
• We provide high-capacity power transmission with minimum losses, with optimal and innovative cable designs.
• We develop installation methods for challenging environment, such as deep waters.

How does this work?

Our objectives

• Safety is paramount. Nexans manufacturing processes and installation methods are tailored to limit and avoid incidents during operations in harsh environments
• Provide reliable HV cable systems through excellence in cable design, manufacturing, testing and installation to minimize risks associated with cable failures.
• Improve the reliability and flexibility of networks, primarily by extending them and adding new interconnections between countries and continents.
• Respond to the growing number of advanced, reliable interconnections.
• Be able to transport more energy over longer distances, through subsea and land interconnections.
• Support the energy transition with state-of-the-art cable-laying vessels. With three vessels in its fleet, Nexans is increasing its versatility and flexibility to cover a vast geographical area.