Subsea cable maker Prysmian has been granted a "notice to proceed" for a contract valued at around 200 million euros (around $232 million) to supply a subsea power cable system for the Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm in the U.S.
The Vineyard Wind 1 offshore wind farm, which will be the first large-scale offshore wind installation in the United States, will consist of an array of 62 wind turbines and will generate 800 megawatts of electricity annually and power over 400,000 homes.
Under the contract awarded in 2019, by the operator Vineyard Wind, LLC, Prysmian will develop a submarine power cable system project which will deliver electricity to the mainland power grid.
Prysmian is responsible for the design, construction, installation, and commissioning of an HVAC (High Voltage Alternating Current) cable system composed of two 220 kV three-core cables utilizing extruded XLPE insulation.
The project requires a total of 134 km of power cables. Prysmian will build the cables at its centers in Pikkala, Finland, and Arco Felice, Italy.
It will use its cable laying vessels Cable Enterprise and Ulisse for the installation of the cables. Delivery and commissioning of the project are scheduled for Q4 2023.
Apart from the subsea cables, Prysmian will also provide PRY-CAM permanent monitoring solutions, which allows "on-line, accurate and reliable in-depth information helping electric assets owners to increase uptime, asset longevity, and safety while reducing maintenance costs and risks."
"The resumption of the vineyard project confirms the acceleration of the United States towards the energy transition,” stated Hakan Ozmen, EVP Projects, Prysmian Group. “Prysmian aims at playing a key role in the development and upgrade of power grid infrastructures to support the transition to renewable energy sources in the US. We have state-of-the-art cable technology, large production and installation assets, as well as a wide presence and track record in the US," concluded Ozmen.
Prysmian Group has also recently announced the award of the SOO GREEN HVDC Link Project, a key milestone in building a US clean energy grid.