Danish offshore cabling specialist NKT has announced plans to build a new cable-laying vessel driven by an increasing demand for high-voltage power cables.
The Nasdaq Copenhagen-listed firm said the move came on the back of strong order intake and a record order backlog of more than €7bn ($7.51bn) at the end of the first quarter of 2023. Since March, NKT has confirmed high-voltage contract awards and booking commitments of more than €5bn.
The new vessel is set to be ready for operation in 2027. NKT said the unit will sport a record-high power cable-laying capacity compared to vessels in the existing world fleet. It will work alongside
NKT Victoria to connect offshore wind farms to land as part of a multi-billion-dollar project led by Dutch-German transmission grid operator TenneT.
to connect offshore wind farms to land as part of a multi-billion-dollar project led by Dutch-German transmission grid operator The company also plans to invest in its Swedish production site in Karlskrona, where it will build a new factory, including a third 200m extrusion tower, adding end-to-end production capacity next to the existing facility. “This will turn the site into the world’s largest high-voltage offshore cable production site,” NKT said. The investment scheme, including the new vessel, is expected to amount to around €1bn from 2023 to 2026.
