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2023 Outstanding projects execution

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Prysmian Group has seen the total value of the projects it is working on rise about fourfold over the past five years to almost €23 billion, with the number of projects increasing to about 70 from 40-50 amid global efforts to invest in large-scale renewable energy and electrification infrastructure to prepare for the green energy transition.

The size of its average and biggest projects has grown significantly, and the company now has more than 20 projects each worth over half a billion euros, compared to the two it had five years ago, and 9 are currently worth more than €1 billion, according to Prysmian’s Head of Project Management, Riccardo Fabbri.

“Not only do we have an increased number of projects, but they are also growing in terms of scale, duration and complexity,” said Fabbri. “We have many more cases where the project lasts more than five years, it happens more frequently that we have one or two project directors leading a project, directing a team of five or six project managers plus dedicated staff. In addition, we have more cases where we have to open dedicated local offices”

Riccardo Fabbri

Prysmian Head of Project Management

He said the expansion was fueled by more investments both in interconnectors and in sustainable energy projects such as offshore wind platforms.

“With the emergence of more powerful cables, the need for longer distances, more requirements in terms of environment and safety, deeper installation, some new technology like dynamic cables and 525 kV– this all means that the price and the magnitude of the project is enlarged,” he said.

The complexity of projects is also rising, with much more documentation required, and more elements needing to be mapped and assessed.

Milestone projects nearing completion include the Viking Link submarine cable connection between UK and Denmark, which is set to be the longest land and submarine power interconnector ever and we are working on Neuconnect, UK-Germany interconnector project, which will be the next longest one; the Vineyard Wind offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts, which is the first utility-scale offshore wind energy project in the US; Provence Grand Large, the first floating offshore wind farm project in France; and Fécamp, a turnkey inter-array cables project for an offshore wind farm off the coast of Normandy. Through Saint Nazaire, Fécamp and Calvados, as well as Provence Grand Large and Gruissan, Prysmian will be at the core of completing all the first French Offshore Wind Projects.

Prysmian is also working on the production of cables for the deepest submarine power link ever: the Tyrrhenian Link in the Mediterranean which will support power exchange between Sardinia, Sicily and the Italian peninsula.

“In order to support the growing market, we have also heavily invested in the past years to upgrade our operational assets, like plants and installation capabilities, consolidating the Group’s leading position in the submarine cables business” added Alberto Boffelli, Projects BU Head of Projects Operations, at Prysmian Group.

“We can count on several centre of excellence to produce submarine and land HV cables, the largest vessels fleet in the industry as well as the widest range of high–tech burial equipment. Our priority is to ensure successful and flawless project execution and on-time delivery” – concluded Boffelli.

In addition, the growth in the portfolio means that Prysmian has also increased the number of its people. Bigger projects require bigger teams of qualified experts, it has also introduced new staff roles dedicated to risk assessment, quantity surveyor, interface management, and increase the staff of contract management, planners and document control, covering all the technicalities so the project manager can focus more on the strategy of the project.

“The greater magnitude and complexity of projects means we have more risks. For this reason, we are adding new people for support in terms of risk management and planning. We are meeting the increase of risk through a better assessment,” said Fabbri.

The company is also very busy with sustainability and social factors, and clients are increasingly looking at these elements during tenders.

“We are growing, but we are not growing at any cost. We are trying to achieve sustainable growth. And sustainability for me is in the way we operate our projects, how we employ our tools and how we employ our people to plan and assess the risks of what we are doing,” concluded Fabbri.