Nexans has been awarded a 72.7 million euros contract by the Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company (TRANSCO) for a turnkey project to upgrade the high voltage underground power cable infrastructure in Abu Dhabi City, UAE.

AbuDhabi Project installationThe project for TRANSCO, a subsidiary of ADWEA (Abu Dhabi Water & Electricity Authority), will involve the design, manufacture, supply, installation and commissioning of approximately 210 km of 132 kV XLPE (cross linked polyethylene) underground power cables. Single-phase cables will have copper cross-sections of 800, 1000 and 1200 mm2.

“This latest contract for TRANSCO reinforces Nexans’ position as a key supplier for high voltage power infrastructure projects in the Gulf region” says Dirk Steinbrink, Managing Director of Nexans Land High Voltage Business Group. “Our presence in Abu Dhabi goes back to the 70s, and we have recently completed two major projects for ADWEA including a 400 kV underground link and a 132 kV submarine link to Delma Island”.

The TRANSCO cables will be manufactured at the Nexans facilities in Belgium and Switzerland and should be supplied and installed over an 18-month period, starting late 2010.

A key regional market

Nexans has always been active across the Middle East region in infrastructure, industry and building markets. Once again, today’s contract illustrates the ever-growing presence of Nexans in the region. Recently awarded a 90 million euros contract in Dubai for its first 400 kV underground cable system, the Group has been supplying medium and high voltage cable for big utilities in Qatar, Dubai, and has been involved in major oil & gas projects with local and international operators, for years.

It is estimated that these markets will have a 7% to 8 % increase from 2011 as the governments have pledged to continue providing funds to infrastructure projects despite the current economic crisis.