Japan’s Sumitomo Electric wins €3bn German cabling contract
The signing ceremony took place in Berlin, Germany. Image courtesy Amprion.
German TSO Amprion has awarded a cabling contract and signed a Preferred Supplier Agreement (PSA) with Japanese cable manufacturer Sumitomo Electric to the tune of more than €3 billion ($3.2 billion).
The agreement sees secured cable supply capacities for sections of the Korridor B and Rhein-Main-Link, to be built up in Germany.
Commenting during the Berlin signing ceremony was Rudi Hoogvliet, state secretary and authorised representative for Baden-Württemberg to the Federal Government, who emphasised: “Renewing and expanding our energy infrastructure is a key task for the coming years.
“This major order from Amprion shows that the energy transition is also a key to new, green economic growth in Baden-Württemberg and beyond.”
The order comprises the 525kV HVDC cable for the approximately 300km V49 link of the Korridor B direct current project between the Wilhelmshaven substations in Schleswig-Holstein and Hamm in North Rhine-Westphalia.
The PSA sees the parties agree to negotiate the awarding of contracts for sections of the Rhein-Main-Link project with the aim of concluding the final contracts by 1 June 2026. Sumitomo Electric undertakes to reserve the necessary production and installation capacities until this date.
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The supply contract for project 49 of the direct current link Korridor B and the PSA for part of the Rhein-Main-Link will give both Amprion and Sumitomo Electric planning certainty over the next decade.
Sumitomo Electric has also announced majority shareholding of a Germany-based high voltage manufacturer Südkabel, and expansion of its production capacity in Mannheim to locally produce the 525kV HVDC cable.
Said Masaki Shirayama, Sumitomo Electric’s CEO of Electric, Wire and Energy Unit: “I am delighted to be selected as the cable partner for two major HVDC projects by Amprion in addition to the A-Nord project currently under construction.
“With acquisition of Südkabel, we can fully localise our operation in Germany to support Amprion and the energy transition in the country. Along with our new submarine cable factory being constructed in Scotland, we will further reinforce and expand our High Voltage power cable capabilities in the region.”
The Rhein-Main-Link underground cable connection is one of the key grid expansion projects of the region’s energy transition.
The high-capacity electricity corridor is expected to transport up to 8GW of green wind power directly to state of Hesse in central Germany, where it will strengthen the economy of the Rhine-Main region.
Dr Hendrik Neumann, CTO of Amprion said: “The contract and the preferred supplier agreement with Sumitomo Electric are crucial to enabling us to implement the Korridor B and Rhein-Main-Link projects on schedule and to our ability to play our part in achieving the nation’s climate goals.
“We are delighted to found a partner in Sumitomo Electric that is building up extensive production capacities in Germany. This will generate value added in Germany and is also the most sustainable solution for implementing our projects thanks to the short transport routes.”
