deugro Delivers HVDC Cable Sections for TenneT Germany’s ElbX Project

Pfaeffikon, Switzerland, November 12, 2026 – On behalf of its client, NKT, a leading provider of high-voltage power cable systems for renewable energy and power transmission projects, deugro Germany in close cooperation with the teams of TenneT Germany and deugro Sweden transported three cable baskets carrying a total of more than 600 metric tons of HVDC cables from Sweden to Germany for TenneT Germany’s ElbX Project.

The ElbX Project forms the Elbe River crossing of the SuedLink and is being implemented by TenneT Germany. As part of the SuedLink HVDC transmission system, it will help transport large volumes of renewable electricity from northern Germany to major consumption centers in the south, thereby strengthening Germany’s electricity grid and supporting the country’s energy transition.

To ensure the safe and efficient transportation of the HVDC cables, the cables were spooled into three cable baskets at NKT’s production facility in Karlskrona, Sweden. The loaded cable baskets, each measuring approximately 8.52 x 8.52 x 4.80 meters and weighing up to 226 metric tons, were collected under personal supervision and coordination of deugro Sweden’s local teams, who ensured smooth cargo handling and loading operations.

The cable sections were manufactured and transported as continuous lengths of more than 5 kilometres each. As the ElbX river crossing was designed as a jointless cable system, preserving the integrity of these single cable lengths throughout the entire logistics chain was a key project requirement. The size, weight, and continuous nature of the cables placed particularly demanding requirements on cargo handling, transport engineering, and operational execution.

Due to the continuous cable manufacturing and spooling process, deugro developed a tailored marine logistics concept in Karlskrona. A dedicated coaster vessel remained on site for approximately two and a half weeks and served as both a floating storage facility and shuttle vessel. As individual cable baskets were completed at the production facility, they were transferred onto the coaster by the factory’s own gantry crane and staged for onward loading. Once all cable baskets had been prepared, double-banking operations were performed to transfer the cargo directly from the coaster onto a chartered heavy-lift vessel equipped with its own 2 x 150 MT onboard cranes. After the cable baskets had been loaded and secured, the vessel departed for Brunsbüttel, Germany, arriving approximately 24 hours later.

For the final transport leg to the construction site, different transport concepts and route options had to be evaluated.

“In addition, the marine transport and unloading operations at Peters Werft were dependent on a range of factors, including weather conditions, wind, water levels, tidal windows and the load-bearing capacity of the quay. These parameters required careful planning, close coordination and a flexible execution strategy throughout the operation,” added Juliette Klein, Project Manager Renewable Energy at deugro

In accordance with the developed transport concept, the cable baskets were loaded onto a pontoon and moved by tugboats to Peters Werft in Wewelsfleth, located close to the designated ElbX staging area near the river-crossing construction site. The pontoon was accompanied by a floating sheerleg crane organized by deugro for the unloading operation at the destination. Upon arrival at Peters Werft, the cable baskets were directly discharged by the floating crane from the pontoon onto SPMTs and transported to the final staging area. The operation was closely monitored by representatives of NKT, TenneT Germany as project owner, deugro and dteq.