The rapid expansion of renewable energy is transforming global power systems, but a critical challenge looms: the infrastructure to deliver that energy where it’s needed. As wind farms push further offshore and countries look to trade electricity across borders, the demand for long-distance transmission cables is surging. However, industry experts warn that by the second half of this decade, a shortage of high-voltage cables could slow progress, making connecting clean energy to the grid a bigger hurdle than generating it.

Under current policies and market trends, global renewable energy capacity is projected to reach 7,300 gigawatts by 2028. But as the world races to scale up wind and solar power, the challenge isn’t just generation - it’s transmission. Offshore wind farms are being developed farther out at sea for stronger, more consistent winds, while nations seek to import renewable power from regions with better natural resources. Cross-border energy trading can help balance supply fluctuations and reduce costs, but it requires robust, high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cable networks to transfer power efficiently across vast distances.

A prime example is the proposed Xlinks project, which aims to deliver Moroccan solar and wind energy to the UK by 2030 via a 3,800km undersea cable. The cable alone will make up nearly half of the project’s £20 billion budget. Even the most advanced HVDC cables experience some power loss - around 3% per 1,000 kilometres - but they remain the most efficient solution for long-range energy transmission.

A Looming Cable Shortage

The next decade will bring an unprecedented surge in demand for high-voltage cables. While China has developed a robust domestic cable industry, supplying mainly its own market, global supply chains remain heavily dominated by a few key players. Consultancy firm 4C Offshore estimates that with the rapid expansion of offshore wind farms and rising demand for cross-border interconnectors, a shortage of HVDC cables (outside of China) could emerge by the late 2020s.

Currently, just three European companies dominate the market, controlling over 75% of the supply for these essential cables: NKT, Prysmian and Nexans. Efforts are underway to address this bottleneck, with new cable manufacturing plants planned in the UK and other countries. However, expanding production capacity is neither simple nor immediate. Building HVDC cable factories requires high capital investment, specialized infrastructure, deep-water port access, and a skilled workforce. These challenges mean that while the world accelerates renewable energy deployment, delivering that power to consumers may become the most pressing obstacle.

As governments and investors push forward with clean energy targets, securing the infrastructure to connect and distribute this power must become a top global priority. Without sufficient transmission capacity, the green energy transition risks stalling—not from a lack of renewable resources, but from the inability to efficiently deliver them.