European grid operator TenneT has inked a EUR-5.5-billion (USD 6.09bn) deal for the supply of cables for the construction of nine offshore grid connection systems of 2 GW each in the Dutch and German parts of the North Sea as well as an onshore project in Germany.
A framework cooperation agreement for the delivery and installation of 525 kV HVDC cables was signed with NKT A/S, Nexans SA and a consortium of Jan De Nul Group, LS Cable & System and Denys, TenneT said on Friday.
The following table gives details about the awarded projects.
| Supplier | Grid connections |
| NKT | Nederwiek 3, Doordewind 1 and Doordewind 2 (Netherlands) |
| Nexans | BalWin3, LanWin4, LanWin2 (Germany) |
| Jan De Nul, LS Cable and Denys |
BalWin4, LanWin1, LanWin5 (Germany); onshore 525 kV DC corridor NordOstLink (Germany)
|
The selected companies plan to begin work on the projects this year. The laying of cables for the offshore grid connections will begin in 2026 and all nine offshore power lines are planned to be commissioned by 2031. The onshore corridor NordOstLink in Schleswig-Holstein, on which Tennet is partnering with sector player 50Hertz, is slated to go online in 2032 while cable laying will start after 2025.
The deal marks the end of the large-scale tender cable launched by TenneT in November 2022 for grid connection systems for a total of fourteen offshore and one onshore corridor project.
In March, TenneT picked NKT and Prysmian SpA to install the cable systems for five 2-GW grid connections in the Dutch North Sea. This was followed by contracts worth EUR 30 billion for the sea- and land-based converter stations of 14 offshore grid connection systems in the Dutch and German North Sea.
Following the latest deal, TenneT’s COO Tim Meyerjuergens commented: “Together, we will deliver around 7,000 kilometres of HVDC cable for fifteen on- and offshore grid connection systems in Germany and the Netherlands by 2032 with this award alone.”
(EUR 1 = USD 1.107)
