Ofgem has approved five major new undersea energy links which will further harness the vast potential of North Sea wind and help power millions of homes.
The greenlit projects will capitalise on the growing amount of homegrown energy by providing additional channels for exporting in times of surplus and importing during times of more limited domestic supply.
The projects comprise the 1.4GW Tarchon Energy Interconnector between East Anglia and Niederlangen, Germany, the 750MW Mares Connect subsea cable between Bodelwyddan, North Wales, and the Republic of Ireland, and the 700MW LirIC interconnector between Kilroot in Northern Ireland to Hunterston in Ayrshire, Scotland.
Two of the projects will also create Great Britain’s first ever Offshore Hybrid Assets (OHAs) which can directly feed energy generated by offshore wind farms into both domestic and European grids.
Energy Minister Michael Shanks said: “Interconnectors are vital international links that allow us to transport power to and from our allies, helping to build a clean, secure energy supply.
“These five projects will expand Britain’s interconnector capacity by 6GW, creating links to export our own clean electricity at times of high generation, and import low-cost power from our neighbours when needed.
“Our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower requires us to make a once in a generation upgrade of Britain’s energy infrastructure – which will include rolling out more interconnector projects in the future, bringing skilled jobs and investment to communities across the country.”
Director general for infrastructure at Ofgem Akshay Kaul 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.”
He added: “With Britain expected to become a net energy exporter in the 2030s, these connections will equip us with world leading technology to export more of our surplus clean power overseas.
“They will also provide greater access to energy imports, which together with domestic low carbon energy sources such as nuclear and biomass, will provide vital back-up energy sources when renewable generation is more limited here.”
LionLink OHA will connect Dutch offshore wind farms to the British grid with an onshore landing point in Suffolk and providing up to 1.8GW of clean electricity to each country.
Nautilus OHA will connect Belgium offshore wind farms to the UK network, 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.
The 700MW LirIC interconnector between Scotland and Northern Ireland is expected to be operational early in the next decade, according to its developer Transmission Investment.
Project director Keith Morrison welcomed Ofgem’s “recognition of the benefits that LirIC will bring to consumers in Great Britain and Northern Ireland”.
“We now look forward to continuing to work with all stakeholders to progress this strategically important interconnector project at pace,” he added.
“In the coming months, we anticipate more important milestones including the completion of further regulatory licensing requirements.”