October 8, 2021 – Since the beginning of October, green electricity has been flowing through the world’s longest submarine cable between Norway and Great Britain for the first time. The North Sea Connection extends over 720 km from the north-east of England through the North Sea to the south-west of Norway. Within the next three months, the high-voltage direct current line will be increased to its full capacity of 1,400 MW, and then it will provide sustainable electricity to 1.4 million households.
Exploiting renewable energies
The link between the two national energy markets allows the exchange and use of renewable energies based on needs. If British wind turbines provide excess power in windy times, there is no need to store it in Great Britain or even turn off the wind turbines. Instead, wind energy flows into Norway, where it is used cheaply or stored in reservoirs. Thus British wind energy can be fully exploited by exporting to Norway and Norway is benefiting from cheaper green energy. On the other hand, if there is little wind energy available in Great Britain, Norway provides renewable energy from hydropower.
Save CO2
On both sides, the project is seen as a masterpiece and a milestone on the road to CO2– Celebrating neutrality. UK National Grid and Norwegian system operator Statnett have completed submarine cable over the past six years and have invested more than £1.6 billion. By connecting to the North Sea, Great Britain aims to avoid 23 million tons of carbon emissions by 2030.
connect europe
However, North Sea Link is not the first cross-border connection to renewable energy markets. A similar project between Norway and Germany was completed only in March of this year. Since then, the North Link submarine has been working to connect the renewable energy markets in Germany and Norway. Germany also benefits from the exchange of renewable energy with the green energy storage country of Europe.
Undersea cables such as North Sea Link and North Link enable the exchange of renewable energy across national borders and energy markets, stabilizing renewable energy supplies, thus promoting the energy transition in Europe. JB
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