New U.K.-France Power Link Gets Under Way

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The first foundation stone for a new 1,000-megawatt (MW) electricity interconnector between the U.K. and France has been laid.

The foundation stone of the Folkestone converter station was laid by Jesse Norman, U.K. Minister for Industry and Energy. The newly named ElecLink will travel along the existing underwater train tunnel, the Channel Tunnel, and cost approximately £580 million ($720 million) to construct. It will be completed at the end of 2019.

The news comes a few months after a major storm wiped out almost 1,000 MW of interconnector capacity from France. U.K. electricity grid operator National Grid plc (NYSE:NGG) (London, England) said that four of the eight cables that make up the 2,000-MW Interconnexion France-Angleterre (IFA) interconnector were severely damaged by a dragging anchor during the storm. French grid operator Réseau de Transport d'Électricité (RTE) said recently that repairs costing up to £40 million ($50 million) will be completed by the end of March. For additional information, see December 8, 2016, article - Storm Damages U.K. Power Links With France.

ElecLink will provide enough potential capacity for more than 1.65 million homes per year, increasing the current Anglo-French exchange capacity by 50%. Developer Eurotunnel Group (Paris, France) said that the link addresses the "energy tri-lemma" identified by the World Energy Council by maintaining security of supply, transitioning to a "cleaner" power economy while keeping prices low and the adoption of new transport modes like electric cars.

Siemens (NYSE:SI) (Munich, Germany) has been picked to construct the converter stations in both the U.K. and France while the fabrication and installation of the DC cables inside the Channel Tunnel and the underground AC cables on the U.K. side will be handled by Balfour Beatty plc (LSE:BBY) (London) and cabling specialist Prysmian Group (Milan, Italy). RTE will undertake the installation of the underground AC cables in France. "As a Government, we are strongly supportive of greater electricity trading with our European partners in order to lower household bills and deliver energy security as part of our modern industrial strategy," said Jesse Norman, Minister for Industry and Energy. "We've created the right environment for cooperative projects like ElecLink to attract investment and compete in the market without needing financial support from our tax and bill payers."

Jacques Gounon, chairman and chief executive officer of Groupe Eurotunnel, added: "ElecLink further underlines how important the Channel Tunnel is to Britain and France. Not only is it a vital transport link, it is set to play an instrumental part in the supply of electricity to the U.K., France and continental Europe. With the debate over the future of energy security brought into focus recently, ElecLink delivers a smart and environmentally friendly way to secure the electricity supply."

The U.K. is suffering from continued low spare capacity as older nuclear and coal-fired plants are shut due to environmental and emissions reasons. In 2015 Industrial Info reported that spare capacity stood at just 1.2% moving into the winter, which is the lowest in 10 years, according to figures released by National Grid. For additional information, see July 23, 2015, article - U.K. Risks Winter Blackouts as Power Stations Close.

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