The overall volume of polymer materials used in cable production in Europe has changed very little in recent years, with consumption at around 1.3m t in 2008, the same as in 2005. Western Europe accounted for 1.1m t with demand for the other 200,000 t coming mainly from central European countries including Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and the Slovak Republic. Nevertheless, the latest “Guide to the cable industry in Europe”, published by market research company Applied Market Information (AMI, Bristol / UK; www.amiplastics.com) points to some clear shifts within the sector since its guide was last published in 2006.

The researcher says the market as a whole is difficult to analyse because of massive regional variations in demand for the wide variety of materials available. For example, PVC compounds account for more than 60% of cable jackets and insulation in Italy, Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Belgium and Ireland, but for less than 40% of the market in France, the Slovak Republic and Switzerland. These countries use far more polyolefin compounds. Despite efforts to harmonise the European market, these national variations are supported by differing standards and the regional availability of materials.

France is the largest market for linear polyethylene because Paris-based global cable systems supplier Nexans (www.nexans.com) traditionally favoured LLDPE. Polyolefins tend to be favoured in northern Europe and Italian cable manufacturers use relatively high volumes of PP for historical reasons. In Germany, on the other hand, PVC is still the preferred material, mainly because local regulations prevent the use of linear materials. Moreover, Germany has traditionally used relatively high volumes of HDPE and MDPE.

On average, across Europe around 55% of cable insulation and jackets are currently made from PVC. This equates to demand of almost 690,000 t in 2008. Even so, it represents a significant reduction in consumption of the material: Ten years ago PVC compounds accounted for 65% of total polymers supplied to the cable industry. New PE compounds take an average of 3% of the market away from PVC each year. Demand for these new materials increased by 90,000 t to over 430,000 t between 2000 and 2008. However, demand is not spread evenly between all PE grades. LDPE and cellular PE have been declining whereas linear PE, XLPE and LSFOH (low smoke fume zero halogen) materials have gained a good deal of ground, albeit from a low basis. The strongest growth has been in crosslinked compounds.

Various PP grades have also made inroads into the European cable industry in recent years, although AMI says this market is still very small. PP is used mainly in the production of glass fibre cables, which have recently shown impressive growth. Various elastomeric grades and TPEs are the only remaining compounds with any significant application in the sector.

The largest European market for compounds for cable production is Italy, which accounts for 16% of total volume, 4% less than in 2008, closely followed by Germany, which accounts for 15% of the market. France and Spain each account for 13%. Next comes Scandinavia with 8% and Benelux with 6%. The central European countries together account for 16% of overall demand, placing them on a par with market leader Italy.

Book Service:
AMI´s "Guide to the cable industry in Europe", 5th edition, 2008, 110 pages with many charts and tables, paperback: EUR 255.00 + VAT: PIE No. 47320
CD-ROM: EUR 650.00 + VAT, PIE No. 47321
Gold CD: EUR 975.00 + VAT, PIE No. 47322.