Recent ventures featuring Superclean™ XLPE insulation and Supersmooth™ XLPE semiconductive materials from the world’s leading providers of innovative, value creating plastics solutions for the wire and cable industry, include the first major construction project in China involving the laying of 220 kV cables under a 10km long bridge; part of the largest tunnel-bridge project in the world to date. The first ever installation of a 135km Extra High Voltage (EHV) cable beneath a densely populated city in India is another example of their use in ground-breaking cabling initiatives.

Borealis and Borouge offer a broad portfolio for the most challenging EHV and High Voltage (HV) cable applications, as well as in Medium Voltage (MV) and Low Voltage (LV) energy distribution cables, building wire and communication cables.

Borealis has implemented many research and production technology initiatives to support cable development as XLPE cables have advanced to EHV (>220 kV) applications. Working in partnership with a global customer base to respond to their needs, Borealis has established technology for the production and supply of compounds to manufacture high-stressed XLPE cables and thus has become the leading supplier of compounds to the largest EHV projects in the world.

Superclean XLPE insulation compounds offer the highest level of material cleanliness essential to insulation performance in elevated electrical stress conditions. In addition to high reliability and low dielectric losses, they offer cable manufacturing advantages through better scorch safety, longer production runs before equipment needs to be cleaned, lower degassing burden and possibility to shorten the production cycles by 10-20%

Supersmooth XLPE semiconductive compounds give very smooth and even surfaces when extruded as the semiconductive screen in conjunction with Superclean XLPE insulation. Supersmooth compounds help eliminate small contaminants and surface pips, reduce electrical stresses and minimise the risk of power failure to help ensure a long cable service life.

Fujikura Shanghai Cable project
The Shanghai Changjiang Tunnel-Bridge project is a world-class 25.5km cross-river project at the estuary of the Changjiang River and an integral part of China’s highway construction plan. When finalised, it will play a significant role in meeting transportation demand in the area and in improving accessibility around Shanghai.

A 220 kV cable network using more than 400km of cables was incorporated into the project, covering bridges, tunnels, pipes and shafts. The vast extent of the distribution network, which was completed in 2009, made high reliability and long life span a priority.

Cable manufacturer Fujikura Shanghai Cable Ltd selected insulation material Superclean LE4201S and shielding material Supersmooth LE0500 from Borouge and Borealis to produce EHV cables meeting the high specifications and service life demands of this pioneering project. The minimum impurity and smooth interface between the cable conductor and insulator will ensure long-term, reliable operation under strong field intensity conditions.

Cable Corporation of India (CCI)
When the city of Chennai, with a population of over 8.5 million people, required a new power supply line, the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board turned to Cable Corporation of India (CCI) for production and installation support.

CCI is the first company in Asia, outside of Japan, to be licensed by Mitsubishi Cable Industries to make EHV cables using its patented MDCV process technology. It is India’s leading EHV cable manufacturer.

To ensure the most effective distribution system in this busy city during both, installation and operation, project criteria included ensuring clean power delivery through an underground installation, with supply unaffected by environmental conditions over a long service lifetime.

Based on its extensive experience with Borealis’ and Borouge’s high purity cable solutions and the need for reliable performance, CCI selected Superclean LE4244EHV and Supersmooth LE0592S XLPE materials with an additional LE7710 semiconductive screen compound for the 135.3km cable. The cable was based around a 1200mm² Milliken conductor.

“This was the first prestigious project in India with this conductor size, type and voltage grade over a long cable length,” comments Mr Nalge Gajanan, Senior Executive Vice President, Marketing CCI. “After some initial trials, it was clear that only with Superclean materials could we achieve the reliability and stability of consistent quality for this type of cable.”

“Borealis and Borouge are truly committed to the wire and cable industry worldwide,” says Marc Hubert, Borealis Vice President for Wire & Cable. “Customers can count on us for global supplies and for continuous development of new solutions way into the future.”

Michael Björn, Borouge Vice President for Wire & Cable adds, “Borealis and Borouge are undertaking major investments in capacity to meet market demand for wire and cable compounds. This includes the construction of a 350,000 tonnes per year LDPE plant inaugurated in June 2010 in Stenungsund, Sweden and an identical new plant to be built as part of the Borouge 3 expansion project in the Ruwais, Abu Dhabi by the end of 2013.”

Source: Borealis, lena.lehner@borealisgroup.com