Ofgem has today (12 November) approved five new undersea energy connectors, including two projects that will create Great Britain’s “first ever” Offshore Hybrid Assets (OHAs).
Three of the greenlit projects are interconnectors that will support Great Britain’s aim of becoming a net exporter of energy by 2030. They are:
- The Tarchon Energy interconnector, 610km subsea cable running between East Anglia and Niederlangen in Germany, that would deliver up to 1.4GW of electricity capacity.
- Mares Connect, a 190km subsea cable between Bodelwyddan, North Wales, and the Republic of Ireland, which will deliver 0.75GW of additional electricity capacity.
- LirlC, a 142km subsea interconnector between Kilroot in Northern Ireland and Hunterston in Ayrshire, Scotland, delivering 0.7GW of additional capacity.
The projects will capitalise on Britain’s wind generation capacity, creating channels for export at times of energy surplus and import when domestic supply is limited.
The approved OHAs will transport wind generated at offshore wind farms into both the UK and European electricity grids, as well as provide interconnector capacity at other times. By combining both interconnection and offshore wind connection into a single asset, community and environmental impact are reduced, as are costs.
For both OHAs, Ofgem has approved the Initial Project Assessments which determine the needs case of new projects for British consumers.
The OHAs are:
- LionLink, which will connect Dutch offshore wind farms to the Great British grid with an onshore landing point in Suffolk. It will provide up to 1.8GW of clean electricity to both countries, and is being developed with Dutch transmission system operator TenneT.
- Nautilus will connect Belgian offshore wind generators to the British grid, coming ashore at the Isle of Grain in Kent and providing up to 1.4GW of offshore wind to each country through subsea electricity cables. It is developed with Belgian transmission operator, Elia.
All five of the projects are expected to be complete and operational by the end of 2032.
Akshay Kaul, director general for infrastructure at Ofgem, said: “We’ve carefully assessed all the proposed projects and only approved those ones which deliver for consumers in terms of value, viability and energy security.
“As we shift to a clean power system more reliant on intermittent wind and solar energy, these new connections will help harness the vast potential of the North Sea and play a key role in making our energy supply cheaper and less reliant on volatile foreign gas markets and associated price spikes.”
National Grid welcomes OHA approvals
National Grid has welcomed the approval of the hybrid interconnectors, which it says reflect the “same technological innovation required” to deliver the Viking Link Interconnector, National Grid’s project that is pegged to be the longest land and subsea interconnector in the world.
According to the distribution operator, the OHAs are set to deliver a combined £647 million in profits to customers over the first ten years of operations.
National Grid Ventures’ participation in the projects is conditional on a final investment decision which, among other things, will require an acceptable economic regulatory regime for the projects to go ahead.
President of National Grid Ventures, Ben Wilson, said: “It is important that the regulatory arrangements are now finalised and deliver an investible framework. Consumer demand for electricity is set to double in the next 25 years, and if built these interconnectors would provide the invaluable flexibility we need in the system for both now and in 2050.
“Between them, LionLink and Nautilus would have the capacity to power 4.2 million UK homes, supplying clean, secure, renewable energy and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.”
