Successful Çanakkale II Submarine Cable Link in Turkey

PRYSMIAN

The Çanakkale II Submarine Cable Link has been successfully commissioned earlier this year during a ceremony attended by customer TEİAŞ, the Turkish Electricity Transmission Corporation.

Faik Kürkçü, Prysmian Group Turkey Contracts Group Director (left)

Erkan Aydogu, Prysmian Group Turkey CEO

“As with the Çanakkale I Project, the link has a double 400 kV AC power transmission circuit with a rating of 1000 MW for each circuit,” explains Faik Kürkçü, Prysmian Group Turkey Contracts Group Director: “For the project route, which spans 4.1km undersea, six submarine power cables XLPE, 1x1600mm2, and two submarine fibre cables were laid at a maximum depth of 90 meters. Circuits were completed by 1.5 km of underground power cables XLPE, 1x2000mm2. The submarine and underground power cables were interconnected at water level landfalls with special sea/land transition joints produced in-house.”

“The main challenges were working at an installation site amid heavy ship traffic in the Dardanelle Strait, where working hours had to comply with the passing of approximately 150 ships each day. Cooperation between local (Turk Prysmian), PPL (Prysmian Powerlink) and other Prysmian Affiliates was extremely efficient. We all worked together as one team, thereby creating great synergy. When asked to complete the project as soon as possible, in harsh winter conditions, we immediately engaged additional work force by grouping all expert subcontractors from other projects and completed the remaining works on land way ahead of schedule working smoothly as one big team.”

Prysmian Group Turkey CEO Erkan Aydogu adds: “Having completed the nearby project Çanakkale I succesfully, Prysmian had acquired considerable experience of the project area and enviromental conditions. Matching this with Prysmian’s worldwide project execution experience ensured that the entire project was completed far ahead of the contractual schedule. Following completion of this project, TEİAŞ was able to very quickly launch İzmit Gulf Crossing tender which comprised of turnkey supply and installation of 26 km submarine cables and 58 km of land cables. Prysmian is optimistic about landing this contract. It is also expected that Çanakkale III Project will also be announced soon.”

On December 2014, TEİAŞ awarded Prysmian Group the €64m contract for the design, supply, installation and commissioning of the HV submarine cables interconnection with a double circuit 380kV from S/S Lapseki 2 to S/S Sütlüce 2 between Europe and Asia across the Dardanelle Strait in Turkey.

The project plays a strategic role in completing Turkey’s power transmission grid and ensuring reliable and cost-effective power flow from the Asian generation sites to the country’s European main consumption centres, including the Istanbul area, and closing the ring around the Marmara Sea. This second double circuit link across the Dardanelles strait complements the existing double circuit interconnection that Prysmian Group executed a few kilometres away under the first contract awarded by TEIAS in September 2012 and commissioned in August 2015.

The 400 kV XLPE insulated submarine cables were manufactured at Prysmian Group’s Pikkala plant, in Finland. Installation was performed by Cable Enterprise under the management of Prysmian Powerlink and supported of Türk Prysmian Kablo for all the land activities.

The project was executed under very severe winter conditions, including several earthquakes and floods that tested the land works to the unforeseen extent during the installation stage. As the landing points on either were on very loose ground, with a lot of water underneath, an unusual amount of ground improvement had to be carried out. At the request of the client, delivery time was also accelerated. The customer has expressed appreciation for a job well done, which has reached the Ministry of Energy.

“As with the Çanakkale I Project, the link has a double 400 kV AC power transmission circuit with a rating of 1000 MW for each circuit,” explains Faik Kürkçü, Prysmian Group Turkey Contracts Group Director: “For the project route, which spans 4.1km undersea, six submarine power cables XLPE, 1x1600mm2, and two submarine fibre cables were laid at a maximum depth of 90 meters. Circuits were completed by 1.5 km of underground power cables XLPE, 1x2000mm2. The submarine and underground power cables were interconnected at water level landfalls with special sea/land transition joints produced in-house.”

“The main challenges were working at an installation site amid heavy ship traffic in the Dardanelle Strait, where working hours had to comply with the passing of approximately 150 ships each day. Cooperation between local (Turk Prysmian), PPL (Prysmian Powerlink) and other Prysmian Affiliates was extremely efficient. We all worked together as one team, thereby creating great synergy. When asked to complete the project as soon as possible, in harsh winter conditions, we immediately engaged additional work force by grouping all expert subcontractors from other projects and completed the remaining works on land way ahead of schedule working smoothly as one big team.”

Prysmian Group Turkey CEO Erkan Aydogu adds: “Having completed the nearby project Çanakkale I succesfully, Prysmian had acquired considerable experience of the project area and enviromental conditions. Matching this with Prysmian’s worldwide project execution experience ensured that the entire project was completed far ahead of the contractual schedule. Following completion of this project, TEİAŞ was able to very quickly launch İzmit Gulf Crossing tender which comprised of turnkey supply and installation of 26 km submarine cables and 58 km of land cables. Prysmian is optimistic about landing this contract. It is also expected that Çanakkale III Project will also be announced soon.”