A transmission licence application has been made in Northern Ireland for a proposed new electricity interconnector, which aims to connect Northern Ireland and Scotland by around the end of the decade.
The LirlC project will be privately financed and will reduce the likelihood of electricity outages by facilitating greater access to other electricity markets.
Transmisson Investment is spearheading the £700m initiative to develop, construct and operate the new sub-sea infrastructure.
LirIC will provide up to 700MW of further capacity between the Irish Integrated Single Energy Market and the British wholesale electricity market, allowing power from renewable energy sources to be supplied in either direction.
LirIC project director, transmission investment Keith Morrison said: “The application for a Transmission Licence is an early milestone in a long process, but it moves us one stage closer towards delivering this very exciting project.
“We would like to take this opportunity to thank all those with whom we have had very positive engagement so far, including the relevant government agencies, and the local political parties.
“LirlC will increase the opportunities for home-grown renewables to export power to other markets, reduce the curtailment of wind generators, lower the wholesale power price in wholesale markets, which on average is forecast to be higher in Northern Ireland, as well as deliver social economic welfare benefits.
“This interconnector will help balance out the system so that power can be imported or exported according to market requirements. There’s a long way to go, but we are pleased to have reached this milestone.”
The project will comprise two convertor stations, one located in Northern Ireland and another in Scotland, and a cable length of around 130km linking the two, depending on the final route.
Potential routes and locations are being studied in detail, and will be selected to minimise disturbance.
Transmission Investment, which is developing a similar scheme between England and France, submitted the application for a transmission licence to the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation on 17 May 2023.
Supporting the project, Martin Doherty of the Centre for Advanced Sustainable Energy stated: “It is vitally important that NI strengthens its interconnectivity with our partners in Britain and Ireland.
“This development is a key step on the path to providing NI with the clean power to transform our economy over the next decades.
“The level of investment clearly demonstrates a confidence within the private sector that NI is on the correct course with its ambitious plans for moving away from a reliance on fossil fuels.”