Here Is How Technology Is Enabling Underground Cabling

Magazine

Team Industry Outlook | Friday, 24 January 2020

With boost from increased urbanisation and rapid development in living infrastructure particularly in the developing countries, the electric cables and wires market is growing very fast. According to a report by Grand View Research, the global wires and cables market is projected to become USD 232.6 billion by 2025, by maintaining a CAGR of 4.9 percent till 2025. Increasing investments in renewable energy generation and smart grid projects coupled with rising demand for the refined power transmission are some of the factors contributing to the market growth, as per the report. “The future might be all about wireless technology, but even the most advanced devices rely on an infrastructure of cable to function,” opines Simon Hopkins, Marketing Manager of Prysmian UK, the largest cable manufacturing company in the UK.

A Perfect Solution in Densely Populated Areas
Technology has brought about a lot of changes in the electric power industry, making the electric power transmission more reliable with robust power distribution mechanisms. One of the latest advancements and the probably the most significant technological advancement in the industry is underground cabling. Before delving deep into how technology enabled the underground cabling, let us first have a quick understanding of what it actually means in today’s world. Underground cabling as the name signifies, helps to transmit the power underground and serves a perfect solution for power distributed especially in densely populated areas, environmentally sensitive areas and other areas where overhead lines are practically impossible. Major advantage of underground cables is that they ensure continuous power supply with low voltage drops withstanding severe weather conditions, unlike overhead power cables that are prone to continuous breakages.

Technology Making It More Cost-effective
Typically, underground cabling is considered for low voltage power transmissions for short distances; however recent advancements powered by technology in the design and manufacturing of cables have made under cabling an efficient means to transform high voltage power for long distances as well. Technology has not only enhanced current carrying capacity of the underground cables but also reduced the manufacturing and deployment costs, making it even more considerable option. Cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE), Gas insulated lines are the two cable models currently being used across the globe for the underground power transmission. XLPE cables come with high transmission capacity irrespective transmission distance, while GILs ensure low resistive losses when compared to other transmission models.