On Monday, SOO Green, a limited liability company owned by a consortium of investment funds led by Denmark’s Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Siemens Energy and New Jersey utility services provider Jingoli Power, announced a major milestone in its bid to build a historic high-voltage direct current (HVDC) power transmission project in the U.S. The company has selected Italian listed energy and telecom cable maker Prysmian Group to provide the cable systems for the SOO Green HVDC Link, the first electricity project of its kind to be installed underground along existing railroad rights of way.
The 2,100-megawatt interstate project, regarded as the first link in a U.S. national clean energy grid, will connect two of the largest energy markets in the country. By linking the Midwest Independent System Operator (MISO) serving the central part of the country, to the eastern PJM Interconnection, SOO Green will deliver abundant, low-cost renewable energy to population centers from Chicago to the mid-Atlantic region.
With a value of approximately $900 million, Prysmian Group will provide state-of-the-art ±525 kV class HVDC cable to reliably and efficiently transmit enough renewable energy to power more than 1.2 million homes. Award is subject to the finalization of contract. The construction part of the project, currently under finalization, will be performed by Jingoli Power and will be added to the overall contract value. Prysmian will be responsible for the full turnkey contact.
The 350-mile-long project will require 700 miles of paired ±525 kV cross-linked polyethylene class cables installed underground primarily along existing railroad rights-of-way connecting SOO Green’s converter station in northern Iowa to its Illinois converter station just west of Chicago. Cable production for the project is expected to start in 2023.
A game-changer for U.S. energy
“As can be seen recently in Texas and California, the U.S. must invest in its transmission infrastructure and SOO Green’s underground rail co-location model is a game-changer that can be replicated nationwide to build a clean energy grid,” said Trey Ward, CEO of Direct Connect, which is developing the HVDC link system on behalf of SOO Green.
“Our partnership with Prysmian provides us with best-in-class cable to build a highly reliable and climate resilient transmission line to supply U.S .households and business with affordable renewable energy for decades to come and bring manufacturing back to the U.S.,” he said.
Prysmian Group has a robust, existing presence in the U.S., particularly following its acquisition of U.S. cable manufacturer General Cable, operating 23 plants and booking around $3 billion in yearly revenues. Cables for the SOO Green project will be Prysmian’s Abbeville, South Carolina facility, which will be upgraded to supply the high voltage cable needed to help achieve President Biden’s goal of a zero-carbon power grid by 2035.
“After the award of flagship projects such as the Vineyard offshore wind farm and the project to upgrade the Washington DC area’s power transmission system, the opportunity to supply HVDC cable for the innovative SOO Green project further solidifies Prysmian Group as the partner of choice for the U.S. interconnector market,” said Prysmian Group CEO Valerio Battista, adding that the company plans to upgrade the Abbeville plant and create new U.S.-based clean energy manufacturing jobs in support of this ambition.
In September 2020, Direct Connect filed a petition requesting franchise approval from the Iowa Utilities Board to build portions of the link along the existing Mason City railroad corridor. At the time of the filing, Direct Connect said it anticipated the project would result in over $446 million in direct investment just in the state of Iowa.
