Nexans to link Orkney Islands to UK mainland in 2027

Following the capacity reservation agreement signed in November 2023, French subsea power cables manufacturer Nexans has officially been awarded a contract by SSEN Transmission to connect the Orkney Islands and the UK mainland.

The Orkney Transmission Link will exchange up to 220 MW of renewable energy between the islands through one high voltage alternating current (HVAC) cable circuit circa 69 kilometers long, with 53 kilometers being subsea and 15 on land, from Finstown in Orkney to Dounreay in Caithness.

Deputy Project Director at SSEN Transmission Ian Clark said: “We’re delighted to have awarded these crucial contracts to Siemens-BAM JV, Nexans and RJ McLeod for the delivery of the Orkney connection project. All three have a strong track-record of delivering challenging projects and we’re looking forward to continuing our relationship with them.”

Deemed as significant, the contract includes both the production and the installation of the cable. According to Nexans, the 220 kV HVAC cable will be the largest capacity cable connecting the Orkney Islands to mainland Scotland.

Nexans will manufacture the offshore sections for the interconnector at its plant in Halden, Norway, the onshore cable sections in Charleroi, Belgium, and the accessories in Cortaillod, Switzerland. The project is expected to be delivered in 2027.

“We are looking forward to working on the Orkney Link as it represents a major milestone in connecting remote renewable energy resources to the UK mainland. Subsea interconnectors are critical for reliably delivering electricity across the oceans from the places with the greatest supply to those with the greatest demand, thereby increasing network resilience and allowing access to reliable energy for consumers,” said Pascal Radue, EVP Nexans’ Generation and Transmission Business Group.

UK energy regulator Ofgem gave its final approval of need for the subsea electricity transmission link to Orkney in July 2023.

According to SSEN Transmission, the Orkney Islands are home to some of the world’s greatest resources of renewable electricity, from established onshore wind to emerging marine technologies, where Orkney is at the forefront of global developments in marine energy generation.