Residents of the United Kingdom, who were worried about rising gas prices and electricity insecurity in the winter, can now relax. Once this new 450-mile (724 km) submarine cable is plugged in, Britain will be able to supply energy from Norway, The BBC reported.
The decision to join an EU country could not be more timely for the island nation, but supplying electricity is not as easy as supplying gas barrels. The infrastructure to achieve this has been in place for more than six years through the North Sea Link project.
According to project website, the licenses were issued in 2014, and the work on the submarine cable was completed only earlier this year. According to A new scientist, the submarine cable also passes through a 1.4 mile (2.3 km) tunnel through a mountain near Norway Kvilldal Power Plant.
At the end of the United Kingdom, the cable will land in Blyth, a small town on the East Coast, which is designated as a renewable energy area. The interconnector, which allows power to be transferred in both directions, is buried between 3-9 feet (1-3 meters) under the seabed, using a number of suitable installation conditions, according to the project’s website. Power transmission will be performed using high voltage direct current (HVDC), a technique that allows more controlled transmission of bulk energy with low losses. There are converter stations at both ends of the cable that can switch the power back to AC for everyday applications.
First tested in June, the interconnector is currently in operation with a capacity of 700 megawatts, which could be further doubled over the next three months to power 1.4 million homes, the BBC reported.
Energy was initially expected to flow into the UK, but with the increase in offshore wind farms, the region hopes to supply electricity to Norway and even keep Hidel’s electricity production for later. The UK has similar plans to connect to the electricity grids of Denmark and Germany in the next few years, according to New Scientist. It already has a working arrangement with France, which received a blow after a fire broke out in a converter station in mid-September, This was reported by Bloomberg.
By setting up an offshore electricity grid, the United Kingdom not only hopes to ensure that it can meet its electricity needs in the future, but can do so without abandoning its carbon targets. The United Kingdom plans to remain carbon neutral until 2050, and electricity generated in Europe is more environmentally friendly than conventional coal-fired power plants, which Britain currently relies on.