Prysmian Announces New EUR 170 Million Cable Laying Vessel

Prysmian will invest more than EUR 170 million in a new cable laying vessel, the company informed today (14 March), saying the vessel is a strategic asset which will, among other things, strengthen Prysmian’s offshore wind project execution capabilities. The new cable laying vessel is expected to be delivered by the second quarter of 2020.

According to the company, the vessel is intended to be the most capable cable layer in the market and to offer enhanced project versatility thanks to advanced features such as deep water installation at depths of more than 2,000m and increased cable loading capacity thanks to large cable rotating platforms.

The new cable layer will also perform complex installation operations supporting a variety of burial systems, as well as state-of-the-art positioning and seakeeping systems and a reduced environmental footprint, Prysmian said.

The company stated that its submarine business secured several important contracts in 2017 with a robust order intake of approximately EUR 1 billion, developing a solid order book in excess of EUR 2,400 million as at 31 December 2017.

In the offshore wind market, Prysmian has been awarded contracts by RTE in 2017, under which it will link three offshore wind farms to the French electricity grid. The interconnection projects the company secured include IFA2 for a submarine link between Britain and France and an NGCP interconnection in the Philippines.

Prysmian’s cable laying vessel fleet currently includes Giulio Verne, Cable Enterprise and Ulisse.