World’s Most Powerful Subsea Trencher Delivering 3600 Horsepower Can Install 18 Feet Below Seabed

Danish power cable producer and manufacturer NKT welcomed the NKT T3600, the company’s latest subsea trencher, to the UK’s Port of Blyth for fit-out and commissioning.

The new trencher is a major part of the company’s ongoing investments in its cable installation capacities.

The world’s most powerful subsea trencher

NKT T3600 delivers 3600 horsepower, which makes it the highest-rated subsea cable trencher in the world.

It is a tracked vehicle designed to maintain high traction and stability while moving across the uneven ocean floor.

Unlike many trenchers that specialise in one method, the T3600 is a hybrid and features dual jetting and cutting tools.

The High-Flow Jetting uses high-pressure water to liquefy sandy or silty sediments, while mechanical cutting utilises a heavy-duty chain cutter or wheel to saw through hard clays and solid rock.

It was engineered to bury high-voltage power cables at depths of up to 5.5 m below the seabed.

Given its jetting and cutting functionality, it can operate in varied soil conditions, from soft mud to hard seabed rock, doing away with the need to replace the machine mid-route.

The trencher will prove vital to protect Europe’s power infrastructure by addressing the need to safeguard energy supplies and undersea infrastructure from accidental damage by ships or threats like sabotage.

Design and Manufacturing

Designed and manufactured in the United Kingdom by Osbit, it will be delivered with an Osbit Launch and Recovery System (LARS), a specialised A-frame and winch system which will enable the trencher to be deployed and recovered safely in the heavy North Sea swells.

NKT revealed its investment in the trencher, estimated to be commercially operational by the end of 2027, in June last year.

A month after the announcement, it entered into a 4-year agreement with Helix Robotics Solutions Group.

The agreement covered installation, operation, maintenance and engineering for the subsea trencher. Additionally, it stated that Helix would also deploy it using its own support ship.

Per reports, NKT and Helix will use the Port of Blyth to mobilise, store and carry out maintenance of the subsea trencher, given its strategic location, looking out directly onto the North Sea.

Helix’s trenching support ship will be equipped with the T1200 Jet Trencher, 2 work-class ROVs, and personnel to support NKT’s offshore cable burial operations and other construction activities, per reports.

Supporting Local Economy & Protecting Critical Undersea Infrastructure

NKT added that the investment in the subsea trencher will not only support the local UK economy but also improve the security of energy supply by protecting the critical undersea cable infrastructure.

The company added that the goal for acquiring the trencher was to strengthen the power cable ecosystem and boost the transition to renewable energy.

Till the trencher becomes commercially operational, the firm plans to invest in research and development of advanced cable technologies.

Executive Vice President and Head of HV Solutions, Darren Fennell, said that protecting power cables is more important than ever because of the increased risk of sabotage and high activity at sea.

He spoke of the NKT-T3600, stating that it will surely be the best in class, ensuring reliable deep-burial of cables in the most challenging marine environmental conditions.

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