Newsroom
French cable manufacturer Nexans expects production of the submarine cable for the Great Sea Interconnector (GSI), the planned electricity link between Greece and Cyprus, to restart in 2028, while continuing to pursue other projects to keep its production facilities occupied.
The company has adjusted its operational plans to reduce its exposure to delays affecting the electricity interconnection, according to chief executive Julien Hubert, who addressed the project's status during the group's presentation of its financial results for the first nine months of the year.
Hubert told analysts that Nexans' financial forecasts through 2028 remained unchanged, regardless of whether the GSI project proceeds. He said the company had secured an alternative contract expected to keep the relevant production facility occupied until mid-2028, reducing the immediate impact of uncertainty surrounding the Cyprus-Greece link.
The additional time will allow Nexans to pursue other potential projects in the Mediterranean to maintain production beyond that point. Several opportunities are currently under discussion, Hubert said.
It will also give the company time to prepare for a possible resumption of the GSI. This would require several months of seabed surveys, followed by preliminary technical planning and arrangements for financing before the project could restart, with 2028 identified as the potential timeframe.
Nexans cautious on seabed surveys and €25 million payment
The company remains guarded about the project's immediate prospects, particularly reports of a possible resumption of seabed surveys at the end of October and the potential payment of €25 million by the Republic of Cyprus.
Responding to an analyst's question on these issues, Hubert said he wanted to avoid repeating the difficulties Nexans encountered in 2025, stressing that discussions were still taking place at political and diplomatic level.
He declined to provide a firm assessment of the next steps, saying the company would communicate its position when the time was appropriate.
The comments leave the proposed electricity interconnection facing an uncertain near-term timetable, while Nexans plans its production schedule around alternative work. The company's position suggests that any revival of cable manufacturing for the GSI will depend on progress in the political discussions, as well as the technical studies and financing preparations required before work can resume.
