Verification of the Operating Conditions of a Submarine Cable Class 35 kV

Abstract

In 1997 a Class 35 kV submarine cable was installed in the Sonda de Campeche, Mexico, for the distribution of electrical energy to several offshore oil production platforms. The installation site is made up of seven marine platforms linked to each other by an electrical network in 34.5 kV. During the installation of the cable, there were some problems in the laying, forming "loops", which led to apply a greater mechanical effort to the cable. After the installation of all cable sections, an off-line evaluation was performed by measuring partial discharges with CA. In 2009, a new evaluation of the submarine cable was carried out by measuring partial discharges in line. The method used for the measurement of DP, is based on a detection system by means of a current sensor for high frequency (UWB), tuned to a frequency of 80 MHz. This paper describes the monitoring of the submarine cable since its installation, evaluation by measuring partial discharges (DP) with CA before commissioning, and its evaluation after twelve years in operation.