Connector Jan De Nul Group

HVDC submarine cable electrification project in Abu Dhabi

A joint Venture of Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), Electricité de France (EDF) and Kyushu Electric Power Japan has awarded a HVDC cable installation and convertors package for the ADNOC-TAQA Lightning Project to a consortium composed of Jan De Nul Group and Samsung C&T. Jan De Nul will be in charge of the design, installation, burial and protection of two cable clusters of almost 1,000 km in total, connecting the islands Al Ghallan and Das in the Arabian Gulf to the onshore converter stations at Al Mirfa and Shuweihat in Abu Dhabi (UAE).

The two cable links are part of the larger Subsea Transmission System (Lightning Project) of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and the Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA), and will connect Abu Dhabi’s onshore electricity grid to all ADNOC’s offshore production facilities.

The first cable cluster, connecting Das Island to shore, comprises three 400 kV subsea cables of 135 km each. The second cluster, connecting Al Ghallan island to shore, concerns four 320 kV submarine cables of 125 km each. The commissioning of the project is scheduled for 2025.

First subsea installation project of its kind in the Middle East
The package awarded to Jan De Nul and Samsung is currently the first-of-its-kind HVDC submarine cable project in the Middle East and MENA region. The consortium’s contract value is 3 billion USD of which 725 million USD for Jan De Nul’s scope. “This electrification project is the biggest cable installation contract in the history of Jan De Nul. This project will entail many of Jan De Nul’s versatile expertises such as cable laying, dredging, jet-trenching, rock protection, landfall preparation, riser platform fabrication and offshore installation. With two of the world’s largest cable installation vessels in our fleet (the Isaac Newton and the Connector), we are well prepared for the future works in the DC and AC subsea cable markets”, says Wim Dhont, Manager Offshore Cables.

Decarbonization to support ‘Net Zero by 2050’ targets
With this strategic project, ADNOC and TAQA plan to significantly decarbonize ADNOC’s offshore production operations. Both parties have joined forces to support the United Arab Emirates in their net-zero targets.

The Lightning Project will replace the existing offshore turbine generators with cleaner and more sustainable onshore power sources from Abu Dhabi, such as solar panels and local nuclear power. This will reduce the carbon footprint of ADNOC’s offshore facilities by more than 30 per cent.