Published on 30th May 2023
An HVDC (High Voltage Direct Current) cable consists of a conductor and an insulator for transmitting electricity over long distances with minimum power loss. HVDC cables mostly use voltages ranging from 100-800 kV and help supply energy to O&G facilities, such as FPSO and other platforms located in or near the ocean.
The history of HVDC cables goes back to 1954 with the world’s first HVDC link connecting the island of Gotland to the Swedish mainland by a 100-km HVDC cable.
The viability of HVDC cable systems for crossing large water bodies, long-distance transmission lines, and power transfer between asynchronous networks makes them ideal for a variety of applications compared to traditional cables. Using HVDC cables, power can also be transferred across grid systems operating at different frequencies (such as 50 Hz and 60 Hz).
Apart from the economical and environmental benefits, HVDC cable transmissions offer various technical advantages, including:
Continue reading to learn more about the major HVDC cable companies in the world.
Table of Contents
Global Top 7 HVDC Cable Manufacturers [2023]
Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd.
LS Cable & System
Nexans Group
NKT A/S
Prysmian S.p.A.
Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd.
ZTT International
Blackridge Research & Consulting – Global HVDC Cables Market Report
Wrapping Up
Here are the world’s leading HVDC cable manufacturers (listed alphabetically):
Founded: 1884
Location: Chiyoda City, Tokyo, Japan
Founded by Ichibei Furukawa, Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. is a well-established Japanese electric and electronics equipment company. Furukawa Electric draws on more than a century of expertise in the development and fabrication of advanced materials to build a sustainable society based on continuous technological innovation.
Furukawa Electric provides a comprehensive range of products for a wide variety of applications, including:
Furukawa Electric’s “Power Cable” portfolio includes:
Furukawa provides quality cable products for stable power transmission. In 2019, Furukawa Electric was awarded a contract by UK’s Carbon Trust for design, initial testing and development of a high voltage dynamic export submarine cable for floating offshore wind power plants.
Founded: 1962
Location: Anyang-si, South Korea
Founded as “Korea Cable Industry,” LS Cable & System (LS C&S) is one of the world’s biggest cable manufacturers and a subsidiary of the LS Group (a South Korean conglomerate).
Power transmission from offshore wind power generation hubs to the mainland and ultra-long-distance grid connections between countries are leading to the increasing demand for DC submarine cables.
Furthermore, HVDC submarine cables are suitable for low attenuation power transmission. With the capability to produce DC XLPE (extruded cross-linked polyethylene) and DC MIND (mass-impregnated non-draining) cables, LS C&S delivers quality submarine cables built on reliable technology and known for easy operation and maintenance.
According to LS C&S, the company is “the first Korean company to develop and implement an HVDC 250 kV MI submarine cable system.”
LS C&S’s product portfolio includes but not limited to the following:
Energy
Industry Cables
Telecommunication
LS C&S is among a handful of companies reported to be successful in developing XLPE cables that are increasingly gaining significance in the renewable industries of Europe and North America.
According to an industry news source, LS C&S won a cable supply contract to supply 360 km of single-core HVDC cables (using XLPE as the insultation material) to the Norfolk Boreas wind farm located off the coast of Norfolk, UK.
Founded: 1994
Location: Courbevoie, Hauts-de-Seine, France
Founded by Christopher Guerin, Nexans operates under three segments—Energy, Electrical Wires, and Telecom—and has six major product lines. Nexans provides copper and fiber optic cables and cabling systems to the building, energy infrastructure, industry, and LAN (Local Area Network) markets.
Nexans’ areas of expertise include but not limited to the following:
Nexans provides a full range of innovative transmission solutions and services to cater to the growing electricity demand while minimizing the total cost of ownership.
With the high-voltage interconnection market (subsea and land) expected to grow by 14.13% annually, there is a growing requirement for long-distance HVDC subsea interconnectors.
Here are a couple of Nexans’ significant accomplishments in the HVDC industry:
In addition, Nexans offers a complete range of customized and standardized accessories for low-, medium-, and high-voltage power networks. As a leading specialized innovator, manufacturer, and distributor of power accessories, Nexans connects all types of power cables for all conductor types and sizes and for high, medium, and low voltage.
Founded: 1891
Location: Brøndby, Denmark
NKT A/S (NKT) is a major cable and cable accessories supplier to the energy sector. The company specializes in designing, manufacturing, and installing low-, medium-, and high-voltage power cable solutions.
NKT is credited with laying the pioneering HVDC transmission cable system between Västervik and Ygne as part of the project on connecting the island of Gotland to the Swedish mainland by a submarine cable system.
NKT provides the following, among other products and solutions:
NKT’s intensive R&D in HVDC transmission technology led to the development of the 640 kV extruded HVDC cable systems—stated to be the “world’s most powerful underground power transmission cable system.”
The cable system enables efficient transmission of renewable energy and also facilitates international energy trading to transmit green power to millions of households.
According to a press release, NKT entered into an agreement to use low-carbon copper for the 320 kV HVDC cables delivered by NKT to the Dogger Bank C in the North Sea—the third phase of Dogger Bank Wind Farm, which is stated to be “the world’s largest offshore wind farm.”
Founded: 1879
Location: Milan, Italy
Prysmian Group is a world-renowned company in the energy and telecom cable systems industry with a diversified business portfolio and 150 years of experience.
Operating in over 50 countries, the Group manufactures thousands of miles of submarine and underground cables and systems for power T&D, as well as medium- and low-voltage cables for the construction and infrastructure sectors.
Additionally, Prysmian Group produces a wide range of connectivity systems, copper cables, and optical fiber cables for data, video, and voice transmission for the telecommunications sector.
Over the years, Prysmian Group has undertaken a comprehensive HVDC development program of stringent testing and extensive trials.
The Group introduced two 525 kV extruded land cable systems—one qualified with P-Laser and another with XLPE insulation.
The P-Laser qualified cable system uses a Prysmian in-house developed material called “HPTE” (High Performance Thermoplastic Elastomer) with proven improved characteristics for HVDC transmission lines at the highest voltage levels. On the other hand, the XLPE qualified cable system uses a new insulation compound tailored to HVDC application.
Prysmian Group was also awarded the SOO Green HVDC Link project as the preferred supplier of HVDC cable systems for the first-of-its-kind transmission project considered to be the first link in building a U.S. clean energy grid.
Founded: 1897
Location: Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan
With over 120 years of history, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Ltd. (Sumitomo Electric or SEI) is a globally recognized electric wire and power cable manufacturer with more than 350 subsidiaries worldwide.
As the leading manufacturer of O/H (overhead) conductors and HV cables up to 800 kV, SEI can design any overhead conductor, power cable system, and accessories based on proven manufacturing expertise and innovative R&D activities.
The company has extensive business operations in the following industries:
SEI’s product portfolio includes:
According to SEI, the company commissioned “the world’s first long-distance 500 kV AC XLPE cable system” (2000) and successfully commercialized “the world’s first 250 kV HVDC XLPE cable system in Hokkaido-Honshu Link (2009).”
From pioneering the first HVDC cable system in 1979, SEI has completed a large number of HVDC cable projects, especially the 500 kV HVDC submarine cables installed across Japan’s Kii Channel—one of the world’s highest-capacity HVDC cable systems with 2,800 MW transmission capacity.
SEI has also developed and commercialized 500 kV MI (Mass Impregnated) and 400 kV XLPE cable system for HVDC applications. SEI’s HVDC XLPE cable enables polarity reversal operations and also significantly higher operational conductor temperature (compared to MI cables).
The HVDC XLPE cable systems provide various benefits, such as reduced CAPEX and increased operational margins, and meet diverse requirements of customers.
Founded: 1992
Location: Nantong, China
ZTT International or ZTT (known by the full name “Jiangsu Zhongtian Technology Co., Ltd.”) is a globally leading cable and wire manufacturer reputed to be the “first special optical fiber cable company listed in China.”
Listed among the Top 500 Chinese enterprises, ZTT is one of the largest advanced manufacturing enterprises in China.
ZTT products are used by telecom operators, as well as power grid, O&G, and the renewable green energy sectors worldwide. The company has a strong track record of working on various projects, including an HVDC interconnector project for offshore wind farm development.
ZTT can produce up to ±320kV of HVDC submarine power cable based on XLPE insulation and used on a VSC (Voltage Source Converter) system. In addition, ZTT has the capability to manufacture HVDC submarine cables with an annual capacity of 1000 km.
As ZTT is equipped with state-of-the-art VCV (Vertical Continuous Vulcanization) lines, vertical assembly lines with big carousels, and several outdoor storage carousels for completed cables, it can manufacture long HVDC submarine cables without factory splices.
Furthermore, ZTT group’s subsidiary—Zhongtian Technology Submarine Cable Co., Ltd.—has an HVDC competence test center to design the cable and perform full analysis to the highest standards.
The HVDC cables market is growing rapidly due to significant drivers, such as:
Blackridge Research & Consulting’s Global HVDC Cables Market report provides a comprehensive analysis of the market by segmentation based on the following:
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HVDC cables carry energy over long distances and connect power networks across countries and continents while minimizing power loss. Moreover, the adaptability of HVDC cables to difficult terrain makes it easy to operate and maintain land-based transmission grids.
Growing wind farms along with power station and transmission line upgrades have had a major impact on the HVDC cable consumption rate in countries like Germany, which is investing heavily in HVDC projects and collaborating with industry players to meet the country’s electrical needs.
HVDC cable manufacturers are not only catering to the ever-growing demand for electricity but also enabling the transition toward cleaner energy provided by renewable energy sources.