SSE, Scottish Power, and National Grid to develop 4 GW power link in UK

• 3 years ago (2020-11-17)
• David Flin

Europe 1061 Transmission 181

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The utilities SSE and Scottish Power , along with grid operator National Grid , are planning the Eastern Link project, comprising two 2 GW subsea HVDC cables between Scotland and England. The Eastern Link will run from two separate points in Scotland – Peterhead and Torness – for 440 km along the east coast of Scotland to Selby and Hawthorn Point in the north of England.

The companies said that the project will support “hundreds of green jobs” during construction and operation. Construction is due to start in 2024, with completion scheduled for 2030. The project will use some of the longest subsea high-voltage power cables in the world to transmit energy from offshore wind farms.

The east coast of Scotland is already the site of 1 GW of offshore wind farms, and hosts a pipeline of projects totalling 4.4 GW. There could be up to 10 GW in Scottish waters planned after the next leasing round for offshore wind licence areas.

Nicola Shaw, Executive Director of National Grid, said the new project: “Will become part of the backbone of the UK’s energy system. It’s a great example of companies working together on impressive engineering feats that will help this country hit its net zero carbon target by 2050.”