(OET) Subsea power cable manufacturer NKT has reported a record-high order backlog for high-voltage cables for 2023, with 45% of orders coming from offshore wind.
At the end of last year, NKT’s order backlog was at €10.8 billion, more than double the company saw at the end of 2022.
In its full-year 2023 results, the cable manufacturer states that this was “driven by the highest annual order intake in company history”. Orders for high-voltage projects that came in last year alone have a combined value of approximately €7 billion.
Interconnector projects make up for around 50% of NKT’s year-end order backlog, offshore wind projects around 45%, and the remaining 5% is in power-from-shore projects, with 75% of all orders placed by large European transmission system operators (TSOs).
“Approximately 26-29% of the high-voltage order backlog is expected to be executed in 2024 and 2025, and the remaining balance in 2026 and beyond,” NKT says.
Among the company’s 2023 contracts are the three NKT secured with TenneT for delivering turnkey high-voltage power cable projects for Ijmuiden Ver Beta, Gamma and Nederwiek 2 offshore wind zones in the Netherlands.
Last year, NKT also received orders for the offshore export cable systems for Ørsted’s 2.9 GW Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm in the UK, ScottishPower Renewables’ 1.4 GW East Anglia Three, also in the UK, and the 1.2 GW Baltic Power offshore wind farm in Poland, developed by PKN Orlen and Northland Power.
The Danish company also saw a massive boost in its order book following a contract for five power cable projects signed with the German TSO 50Hertz, worth a total of €3.5 billion.
In addition to the projects in the backlog, NKT also signed agreements for further projects in 2023, which are yet to be signed as firm contracts.
As reported last year, NKT inked a multi-year framework agreement with Tennet for further three offshore wind projects in the Netherlands with a total generation capacity of 6 GW: Nederwiek 3, Doordewind 1, and Doordewind 2.
“The contracts are expected to be called off in 2025 and will have a combined value of approx. EUR 1.5 bn, which covers the majority of the project scope. The framework agreement runs until 2028, with possible extension until 2031. Additional projects could be added under the framework agreement,” NKT states in its 2023 results.
In the interconnector market, NKT highlighted a contract the company signed in 2023 for the Biscay Gulf Interconnector that will connect France and Spain. The contract was awarded by INELFE, a joint venture between the Spanish TSO Red Eléctrica and its French counterpart RTE.
The company also signed capacity reservation agreements for two Scottish transmission link projects, Western Isles and Spittal-Peterhead, with SSEN Transmission. The combined value of these two projects is estimated to be above €1 billion. NKT and SSEN also intend to enter into a framework agreement for future projects, according to the cable manufacturer.
Brazil Energy Insight 
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