The Lifetime of Cables

Underground cables have been made for many years using a range of different technologies. The earliest cables were made from copper cores with pressurised oil-soaked paper insulating materials. While there were early teething troubles with oil and paper technology, some cables are still running after 60 years in the ground.

Modern XLPE cables use a special plastic insulator instead of oil and paper and are designed to overcome some of the cost and reliability drawbacks. While early XLPE cables also had teething troubles, changes in design have enabled them to give reliable service since the mid 1980s. The projected lifetimes of these systems are expected to be in excess of the 40 year design life.