LS Cable & System Wins Norfolk Boreas HVDC Deal
LS Cable & System has secured a $167 million order to supply high‑voltage direct current (HVDC) cables for the Norfolk Boreas Offshore Wind Farm in the U.K. The contract comes from Sweden‑based Vattenfall, one of Europe’s largest electricity and heat producers.
Under this agreement, LS Cable & System will deliver 320 kV HVDC export cables laid under the seabed. The design uses cross‑linked polyethylene (XLPE) insulation. The company describes this as a first for this type of offshore HVDC application in the region.
Offshore and Onshore Cable Routes
The Norfolk Boreas offshore cable corridor will use about 96 km of subsea export cables. These cables will carry electricity from offshore substations to a landfall point near Happisburgh village on the Norfolk coast.
From there, an onshore cable system will connect the project’s onshore substation to an existing National Grid substation. Plans call for an onshore cable corridor of roughly 63 km. Together, these routes will create a high‑capacity path that brings renewable power from the North Sea into the U.K. grid.
Part of the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone
Norfolk Boreas sits around 47 km off the Norfolk coast. It serves as the first phase of Vattenfall’s Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone.
The second phase, Norfolk Vanguard, will follow with similar large‑scale infrastructure and capacity goals. DEME Offshore, working in consortium with LS Cable & System, also holds preferred supplier status for Norfolk Vanguard. Each wind farm will provide 1.8 GW of capacity, forming one of the world’s largest offshore wind clusters when both projects reach full operation.
XLPE HVDC Cables Gain Momentum
An LS Cable & System official notes that only a few manufacturers have developed XLPE‑insulated HVDC submarine cables that also offer easier installation, connection, maintenance, and repair. As offshore wind projects grow, these XLPE HVDC cables increasingly appear as a mainstream choice in renewable markets across Europe and North America.
By delivering XLPE export cables for Norfolk Boreas, LS Cable & System shows strong technical capability and supports the wider move toward robust, high‑capacity transmission solutions for utility‑scale offshore wind.
