- Open Access
- Article
Electric Transmission from Sarawak to Singapore Using Cable Suspended within O&G Pipes
by Prashobh Karunakaran* 
, Mohd Shahril Oaman1 , Salim Sulaiman Maaji2 and Chee Cheng Sung 3
1 SET, CRISD, University of Technology Sarawak (UTS), Sibu, 96000, Malaysia
2 SET, CRISD, University of Technology Sarawak (UTS), Sibu,9600, Malaysia
3 School of Computer Science, University of Nottingham, NG8 1BB, United Kingdom
4 SET, CRISD, University of Technology Sarawak (UTS), Sibu,9600, Malaysia
* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Journal of Engineering Research and Sciences, Volume 3, Issue 1, Page # 21-34, 2024; DOI: 10.55708/js0405003
Keywords: Submarine transmission, XLPE, HDPE, steel, electric transmission within pipes, eddy current, Joule heating
Received: 18 April 2025, Revised: 22 May 2025, Accepted: 23 May 2025, Published Online: 28 May 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Special Issue on Multidisciplinary Sciences and Advanced Technology 2024 & Section Biochemical Research Methods (BRM))
APA Style
Karunakaran, P., Oaman, M. S., Maaji, S. S., & Sung, C. C. (2025). Electric transmission from Sarawak to Singapore using cable suspended within O&G pipes. Journal of Engineering Research and Sciences, 4(5), 21–34. https://doi.org/10.55708/js0405003
Chicago/Turabian Style
Karunakaran, Prashobh, Mohd Shahril Oaman, Salim Sulaiman Maaji, and Chee Cheng Sung. 2025. “Electric Transmission from Sarawak to Singapore Using Cable Suspended within O&G Pipes.” Journal of Engineering Research and Sciences 4 (5): 21–34. https://doi.org/10.55708/js0405003.
IEEE Style
P. Karunakaran, M. S. Oaman, S. S. Maaji, and C. C. Sung, “Electric transmission from Sarawak to Singapore using cable suspended within O&G pipes,” J. Eng. Res. Sci., vol. 4, no. 5, pp. 21–34, 2025, doi: 10.55708/js0405003.
Running HV cables within pipes has been done since the 1970s but not fully utilizing the piping expertise developed by the O&G industry since 1859. The O&G industry has laid pipes on the seabed over a vast area north of Sarawak. This research studies the feasibility of utilizing this available industry to send power from Sarawak to Singapore. A HV cable will be suspended at the center of O&G pipes pumped with air at 7 amt. Another pipe will return the air back to Sarawak to be cooled and recycled. This will simulate the higher power transmission capability of overhead lines compared to submarine cables. The media is currently broadcasting that a submarine cable will send power from Sarawak to Singapore. But without thermal dissipation for the Joule heating generated over the 700 km cable, there will be reduced efficiency and a higher probability of failure. The lab experiment done was to send 0 – 50A, in steps of 5A, in a cable suspended at the center of pipes of varying Ø. The eddy current generated heat on the pipe was measured. This data is then extrapolated to forecast if 1000 A is sent in a Ø = 2m pipe.
