- 31 May 2005 -

Pirelli communications and power for China

Pirelli Telecom Cables & Systems has secured a contract in China for the supply of an Optical Ground Wire (OPGW) cable system which will take its total worldwide OPGW volume past the 75,000km mark - almost enough to go twice around the world.

OPGW cable forms an integral part of an overhead electricity network, performing both the primary function of a conventional earth conductor together with the provision of a state-of-the-art communications link thanks to the inclusion of optical fibres.

The customer for this project is the East China Power Grid Corporation and the cable will form a part of the East China Anhui Long Span OPGW network. The installation will be on the 500kV transmission lines of ECPGC over a distance of 165km covering some of the most difficult terrain in the region.

A special section of cable has been designed to perform the 2km crossing of the Yangzi River with Pirelli also supplying all fittings and accessories for the project.

The cable - which will be produced at both Pirelli's new facility in Vilanova, Spain and also at its factory at Wuxi near Shanghai - will bring to over 6,000 km the quantity of OPGW which Pirelli has now installed in China, including a large quantity recently installed as part of the prestigious Three Gorges Project.