High voltage · Transmission cable
138 kV cable, its ducts and its paperwork.
Transmission class cable in paper-insulated, fluid-filled and high grade XLPE forms, where oil condition and termination records sit alongside the metal.
At 138 kV the cable is a system, not a reel. It runs in concrete-encased ducts or inside a steel pipe, it terminates in potheads or compound-filled ends, and it may be held under oil pressure for its whole life. Removing it is an engineering exercise before it is a purchase.
The material still comes to a buying desk, usually after a utility has retired a run or an EPC contractor has taken a tie out of service. What arrives with it, in records and in fittings, often decides more than the conductor size, and the file is read before the cable is touched.
Buy quote request
Tell us what you have
Type, conductor, voltage class and how much is on hand. Photos can follow by text or email. A buyer reviews the lot before anyone talks about money.
Prefer to talk it through? 954-740-1983 · saleselectricalbuyers@gmail.com
01 Types
Constructions at this class
Paper-insulated lead-covered cable is the older form, with impregnated paper and a lead sheath, sometimes oil-filled and sometimes mass-impregnated. High-pressure fluid-filled cable puts three paper-insulated cables inside a steel pipe filled with oil under pressure, and the pipe becomes part of the electrical system, not just a route for it.
High grade XLPE at 138 kV exists in newer systems, with a thick insulation wall, semicon screens, a metallic sheath and an outer jacket. It is easier to handle than the paper types but no less documented, because the joints and terminations carry stresses the cable body never sees.
02 Installation
Ducts, pipes and the route
Duct systems are concrete-encased or direct-buried, with manholes at pulls and splice points. Pipe-type systems have pumping plants, stop joints and pressurising equipment. The route drawing tells a buyer how long the run is, where it can be cut, and what has to be opened to get it out.
Cable in duct is not removed like cable on a drum. It is pulled, and pulling puts tension on the sheath and insulation at every bend. The pulling plan, the lubricant used and the tensions recorded at installation all bear on whether the cable survived its first installation, let alone its removal.
- Route drawing and manhole locations, since cuts are made at set points.
- Whether the cable is in duct, in pipe or direct buried.
- Splice and joint locations, with the type of joint used at each.
- Termination type at both ends: pothead, SF6 or stress cone.
03 Condition
Oil condition and terminations
Fluid-filled cable carries oil that has been tested throughout its life. Dielectric strength, moisture content and dissolved gas results describe the insulation's health, and a buyer reads them as a history rather than a single figure. Oil that has been maintained is a different proposition from oil that has not.
Terminations are the other half. A pothead or an SF6 termination is a substantial fitting with its own value, and one cut off with a saw is no longer a termination. Buyers ask how the ends were made safe and whether the fittings were kept.
04 Clearance
Paperwork before release
A utility will not release a 138 kV run on a verbal instruction. Expect a clearance naming the circuit, proof of isolation and grounding, the disposal authorisation, and the test and oil records the utility holds. Where a contractor is acting, the chain of authority back to the owner has to be visible.
The handling plan belongs in the same package: how the cable will be cut, whether oil will be drained on site, how it will be coiled or drummed, and what vehicle can reach the manholes. A buyer who sees the plan before the visit can describe the work honestly rather than guess at it.
Depressurisation and drainage are the owner's procedure. A fluid-filled section is never opened to speed up a collection.
FAQ Seller questions
What sellers ask before they send a list
Answers describe how the buying desk works. They are not an offer, a rate or a promise of purchase.
Can 138 kV cable be bought while it is still pressurised?
No. A fluid-filled run has to be taken out of service, depressurised and drained under the owner's procedure before any section is cut. The release should confirm that has happened, and the oil handling method should be agreed before work starts.
What oil records matter?
Test results for dielectric strength, moisture and dissolved gas, with dates. A trend over years says more than one sample. Where records were never kept, the oil is treated as unknown and the cable is reviewed on construction and physical condition instead.
Are terminations included in the lot?
If they were removed intact, yes, and they should be listed separately from the cable. Potheads, stress cones and SF6 terminations are matched to the cable and to the equipment, so a buyer wants to know the type and whether the fitting was cut.
How long can a 138 kV run be?
That is a route question, not a cable question, and the answer comes from the utility's drawings. Buyers ask for the route length, the manhole spacing and the splice locations, because each one sets where the cable can be cut and how it can be transported.
Does paper-insulated cable need special transport?
Yes. The lead sheath has to be supported, bends are kept to a controlled radius, and the ends stay sealed so the paper does not take moisture. Cutting a run into short lengths without a plan can turn usable cable into scrap quickly.
What if the utility's own disposal process applies?
Then that process runs first. Many utilities release material through their own surplus or scrap channels, and material is reviewed here only once it has been released to the open market with the paperwork to show it.
Buy quote request
Tell us what you have
Type, conductor, voltage class and how much is on hand. Photos can follow by text or email. A buyer reviews the lot before anyone talks about money.
Prefer to talk it through? 954-740-1983 · saleselectricalbuyers@gmail.com