Cellino San Marco: major solar PV plant in Italy

Context

In 2010, Nexans partnered with Schneider Electric to supply ENERGYFLEX® PV cables for a significant project in the Puglia region of Italy. The Cellino San Marco (CSM) Solar Plant, largest solar PV project in Italy at this time, involved the installation of 580,000 panels and aimed to generate clean energy for 18,000 households while offseting 28,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) per year.

Challenges

The project faced several challenges, including the need for cables with exceptional reliability, durability, and high performance for in-field connections between PV panels and inverters. Additionally, there was a tight delivery schedule of 2 ½ months.

Nexans implication

Nexans played a crucial role in meeting the project’s cable requirements and delivery deadlines. Our involvement included:

1. Supplying 1,000 km of cables, including 212 km of cable with a single 6 mm2 copper core and 804 km of cable with a single 10 mm² copper core. The cables comprise both standard ENERGYFLEX® and ENERGYFLEX® One Stripe featuring a colored red or blue strip for ease of identification.
2. Offering a fast response to meet the tight delivery schedule, demonstrating Nexans’ commitment to customer satisfaction, the cables were installed at the site between March and June 2010.
3. Supporting Schneider Electric in creating the underground cable network by supplying bare Nexans cable with a copper cross-section of 35 mm².

In 2010, the Cellino San Marco project, comprising 580,000 panels, is the largest solar photovoltaic project in Italy to have reached financial close.

Through its collaboration with Schneider Electric on the CSM Solar Plant project, Nexans demonstrated its expertise in providing reliable and high-performance cables for renewable energy installations. The successful completion of the project highlights Nexans’ commitment to sustainability and innovation in the energy sector.