The HVDC Light system package consists essentially of two of the new type converter stations equipped with a control system, phase reactors and harmonic filters. These stations are connected by a special XLPE DC cable which ABB management claim is cost-competitive and comparatively easy to install.

Apparently the coincidental recent development of this cable technology has been an important element in the feasibility of the HVDC Light solution inasmuch as existing DC cables are either too costly or too difficult to lay.

The new XLPE DC cable is much lighter than oil-impregnated paper cables, making installation much easier by using less costly equipment and methods.

By contrast, Eriksson claims that the new extruded cable, consisting of an aluminum conductor with a specially treated cross-linked polyethylene material, has good production flow rates, meaning that it offers a relatively low cost.

He also states that this cable (weighing only about 1 kilogram/meter) is much lighter than oil-impregnated paper cables thereby making installation much easier by allowing use of less costly equipment and installation methods.