The first subsea electricity link between Scotland and Wales has been hailed as “a perfect symbol” of the UK’s single energy market by a Westminster Coalition minister.
The 260-mile (418km) link from Hunterston power station on the west coast of Scotland to Connah’s Quay on the North Wales coast will have enough capacity to power four million homes a year when it goes online in 2016.
It is bi-directional so that England and Wales can access Scotland’s renewable energy and power can flow the other way “when the wind doesn’t blow” in Scotland, Energy Minister Michael Fallon said.
“The Western Link is a perfect symbol of the single energy market, of which Scotland is part,” he said.
“It will enable English and Welsh consumers to access Scottish renewables and enable Scots to benefit from base load power when the wind doesn’t blow.
“This world-leading, billion-pound under-sea connector shows the strength of our current integrated system.”
Construction of the £1.3 billion Western Link HVDC will support 450 jobs with the prospect of “thousands of jobs over the next decade” from further network upgrades, according to ScottishPower Energy Networks.
It is also investing £2.6 billion in network upgrades to 2021 with a further £5 billion proposed between 2015 and 2023 across central and southern Scotland, Merseyside and North Wales.
Iberdrola and ScottishPower chairman Ignacio Galan said the Western Link is a “hugely ambitious” project.
“Our engineers are currently delivering some of the most important upgrades to the electricity network for more than half a century, with billions of pounds being invested and thousands of jobs being supported and created,” he said.
“We are planning a total investment in excess of £10 billion by the end of the decade, with the majority on network upgrades and renewable energy projects.
“The Western Link project will act as a benchmark for similar developments around the world, as the deployment of this technology at such a large scale has never been undertaken before.
“This will help to increase energy security across the UK and will benefit the people of Scotland, England and Wales.”
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