Prysmian's third and newest vessel “ULISSE” now ready for operation

Prysmian Group, world leader in the energy and telecom cable systems industry, announces today the readiness of its new cable lay vessel, named Ulisse, for offshore cable installation operations, following an investment of over 20 million Euro. The Group can now rely on a fleet of three world class vessels - Giulio Verne, Cable Enterprise and Ulisse - as well as its extensive range of well-proven in-house cable protection equipment to provide an extended and strengthened submarine cable installation capability.

“Our objective is to have a more comprehensive control of our supply chain by insourcing a greater part of the installation work and to further boost the Group’s submarine project execution capabilities with a flexible asset that can both transport submarine cables and perform cable lay and burial installation operations in shallow waters”, explains Massimo Battaini, Energy Projects Senior Vice President at Prysmian Group. “Thanks to this new vessel we can offer an ever wider and more versatile range of installation services, thus strengthening our position in a highly strategic sector for the Group”, he added.

Following the purchase from the ship owner EOS, the flat top barge has been converted into a ca. 120 m by 33 m cable layer at the PaxOcean shipyard in Singapore. Renamed Ulisse, she now has an eight point spread mooring system, enabling her to meet the operating requirements even in harsh environmental conditions. The vessel will be capable of transporting 7,000 tonnes of cable in a 30 m diameter carousel, and can be equipped with a carousel loading pick-up arm and a stern mounted cable chute for loading and surface lay operations.

The first project to be executed by Ulisse will be the Negros-Panay connection in the Philippines - awarded in December 2014 and worth a total of around Euro 90 million - which comprises the design, supply, installation, and commissioning of an HVAC (High Voltage Alternating Current) 230 kV submarine cable system, with XLPE insulation, along a 22 km submarine route across the Guimaras Strait.