Norway Green Lights U.K. Grid Link

Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--The world's longest subsea power cable is one step closer to reality, after Norway's government gave the green light for the construction of the first interconnector between Norway and the U.K.

The North Sea Network (NSN) is a joint venture between grid operators Statnett (Oslo) and National Grid plc (NYSE:NGG) (London) and will set out to create an interconnector with a capacity of up to 1,400-megawatts (MW). The project will consist of two 714-kilometer, high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) marine cables linking southwest Norway to the Northumberland coast, in northeast England. A final investment decision on NSN is due next Spring.

The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy granted Statnett licenses for two new electricity interconnectors, one to Germany and one to the U.K.. In total, this will increase Norway's interconnection capacity by 50%. Statnett plans commissioning of the cable to Germany in 2018, while the cable to the U.K. will be operational by 2020. A final investment decision on NSN is due next Spring.

"The electricity interconnectors will contribute to Norwegian renewable energy replacing fossil energy in Europe and will facilitate green value creation in Norway," said Norwegian Minister for Climate and Environment, Tine Sundtoft.

The European Union (EU) has a target to increase the transmission capacity between its member states, with the stated goal of each country having an interconnector capacity of around 10% of its own installed generation capacity. The goal is to boost energy security within the E.U. and support the rollout of more renewable energy.

U.K. Energy and Climate Change Secretary, Ed Davey, said: "This is excellent news for both the U.K. and Norway. This new cable will allow the U.K. to import huge amounts of clean green hydroelectricity--enough to power up to 4 million homes--to back up our wind and solar power. This bolsters our energy security and will help keep consumers' bills down. It's a massive win-win for consumers and the climate."

Last year, the U.K.'s National Grid signed an agreement with its Danish counterpart, Energinet.dk (Frederica, Denmark), to look into building the first Denmark-U.K. link. For additional information, see October 22, 2013, article - First U.K.-Denmark Power Link Advances.

In 2011, the €600 million ($764 million) 1,000 MW BritNed cable from the Netherlands to the U.K. was completed. For additional information see April 6, 2011, article - U.K., Netherlands Connect Power Grids.

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