Gay Head near Martha's Vinyard, with a view of the offshore area.

Distributed Energy Resources

Submarine Power Cables Installed at Vineyard Wind 1 Offshore Wind Project

Oct. 23, 2023

The project, 13 miles from Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, is one of the first offshore wind projects in the U.S.

Prysmian Group has installed and tested high voltage equipment at Vineyard Wind 1, which is one of the first utility-scale offshore wind farm in the U.S.

The offshore wind power project was delayed for years, having its license held up during the Donald Trump administration before getting fast-tracked by President Joe Biden. Final turbines are slated for completion in 2024.

Located more than 15 miles off the coast of Massachusetts, Vineyard Wind consists of an array of 62 wind turbines that will generate 800 MW of electricity and power over 400,000 homes.

The project was awarded to Prysmian Group in May 2019 by Vineyard Wind, LLC, according to an announcement by Prysmian.

The contract included the design, manufacture, installation and commissioning of a high voltage alternating current (HVDC) cable system composed of two 220 kV three-core cables with extruded XLPE insulation that will deliver clean energy to the mainland power grid in the US and will help to reduce carbon emissions by more than 1.6 million tonnes per year.

The 134-km submarine power cables were manufactured at Prysmian Group's centers of excellence in Pikkala, Finland, and Arco Felice, Italy, while marine installation operations were performed by Prysmian Group's Cable Enterprise and Ulisse cable laying vessels.

About the Author

Jeff Postelwait | Managing Editor

Jeff Postelwait is a writer and editor with a background in newspapers and online editing who has been writing about the electric utility industry since 2008. Jeff is senior editor for T&D World magazine and sits on the advisory board of the T&D World Conference and Exhibition. Utility Products, Power Engineering, Powergrid International and Electric Light & Power are some of the other publications in which Jeff's work has been featured. Jeff received his degree in journalism news editing from Oklahoma State University and currently operates out of Oregon.