Prysmian (PRY.MI): Key takeaways from optical fiber site visit

Research evidence excerpt

Prysmian (PRY.MI): Key takeaways from optical fiber site visit

Equity Research

26 June 2026 | 12:38AM BST

Daniela Costa

+44(20)7774-8354 |

daniela.costa@gs.com

Goldman Sachs International

On June 25, we visited Prysmian’s optical fiber preform and drawing plant in

Douvrin, Lille. This plant is the largest in Europe and currently employs about

350 people, having consistently expanded its capacity since its inception by

Alcatel in 1990. Our key takeaways are: 1) Glass preform production remains the

primary bottleneck for Prysmian (and in the market), expected to drive higher

prices in the next two years before volumes ramp in 2029 as new capacity comes

online, 2) Technological differentiation, driven by bend-insensitive fiber and the

transition to high-density architectures, underpins Prysmian competitive

advantage, 3) Supply chain dynamics have evolved and while helium impact now

seems minor, germanium remains a long-term constraint for the industry, 4)

Exponential datacenter demand and hyperscaler contract dynamics, shift focus

away from traditional telecom customers, and 5) Margin improvement to

continue, underpinned by improving frame agreement pricing and revisited

customer mix.

We saw the trip as supportive of our Buy rating on Prysmian, where we see 24%

margin in 2026 moving towards 28% by 2028, with topline organic CAGR at 13%.

We are 2-9% ahead of Visible Alpha Consensus Data for FY26-28E and expect

the company to raise 2026 guidance at 2Q and FY28 guide at FY26 reporting.

n Glass preform production remains the primary bottleneck for Prysmian (and

the industry), expected to drive higher prices in the next 2 years before

volumes ramp in 2029 as new capacity comes online. Prysmian’s global

preform capacity is distributed across Douvrin, Eindhoven, Claremont, and