Nexans’ subsea cable plant expansion spurs headcount and capacity boost amid rising demand in energy transition arena

France-headquartered cable systems designer and manufacturer Nexans has opened the doors of a newly expanded section of its high voltage subsea cable plant in Norway for business to address the growing demand in the offshore wind and electrification segments of the global energy transition tale.

With the construction, which kicked off in November 2021, completed, Nexans finalized the expansion of its high-voltage subsea cable plant in Halden, Norway, to respond to the increased demand for electrification and energy transition tools across the globe. This addition is said to contain some of the most advanced cable production technology, which will be able to deliver subsea cables up to 525 kV for high voltage direct current (HVDC) and 420 kV for high voltage alternating current (HVAC).

Christopher Guerin, CEO of Nexans, commented: “Our investment in Halden significantly increases our production capacity and illustrates Nexans’ commitment to sustainability and the global energy transition. The plant will supply international markets with cables for key offshore wind farms and interconnectors that will bring renewable energy from the areas of high supply to those of high demand.”

While more than doubling the capacity of the plant for HVDC extruded cables, the 34,000 square meter expansion will support the firm’s key projects such as the frame agreement with TenneT from last year. The expanded section comes with a 152.89-meter tall second extrusion tower, which is expected to allow the plant to insulate four cables simultaneously aside from the two existing lines.

According to the French cable maker, this tower, which is said to qualify as Norway’s tallest building and first skyscraper, will be focused on the production of HVDC cables for offshore wind farms while also being able to serve both HVDC and HVAC applications.

With 100 new hires trained to handle the spike in production from the facility and local indirect jobs also expected to be created to assist the supply chain in Europe and globally, Nexans underlines that this brings the total headcount of the plant up to around 1,000 workers on site.

Pascal Radue, EVP of Nexans’ Generation and Transmission Business Group, remarked: “The importance of the newly expanded Halden plant cannot be overstated. In a world that is rapidly becoming more electrified, the expansion of cable production will supply a critical need in Europe and globally. We are excited to work with our customers on producing the most technologically advanced cables to date, which will connect renewables to shore and electricity across continents.”

The 1974-built Halden plant, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, had its first extrusion tower constructed in 1992 to incorporate the first high voltage XLPE insulated cables into Nexans’ portfolio. This plant features a testing facility for high voltage components and its own slip-to-load cables directly onto cable-laying vessels such as the French giant’s CLV Aurora, C/S Skagerrak, and CLV Electra, the firm’s newest vessel under construction at Ulstein Verft.

Nexans is currently busy with multiple projects, including the installation of the HVAC onshore cable in Ireland for the Celtic Interconnector, which represents the first subsea cable undertaking to enable the exchange of electricity between Ireland and France.

Greece’s Asso.subsea recently joined forces with the French cable maker to perform subsea burial operations for the project, which is bringing Ireland’s first power connection with continental Europe to life.