UK and Netherlands to build 1.8-GW power link

Britain and the Netherlands plan to build a 1.8-GW power link connecting the Dutch province of Zuid-Holland to the cities of Birmingham and Manchester in the UK, Reuters reported on Monday.

Dubbed Lionlink, the connector will be able to transfer electricity to and from both markets and is considered Europe’s largest cross-border energy linkage to date.

The project will be a joint venture between Britain’s National Grid and Dutch transmission systems operator TenneT.

The project is in its planning phase, with FID on the project expected before 2030.

Currently Britain and the Netherlands are linked via the 1-GW BritNed connector.

Plans were announced by the country’s energy ministers ahead of a summit in Ostend, Belgium. Governments from nine countries, including Germany, France and Norway, discussed plans to build 120 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030.

“Together with the strong ties we have with our northern European neighbours united today at the North Sea Summit, we are bolstering our energy security and sending a strong signal to Putin’s Russia that the days of his dominance over global power markets are well and truly over,” said UK’s Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Grant Shapps.

Earlier in April 2023, Siemens Energy and a partner signed a contract with TenneT worth around USD 7.68 billion to build high-voltage direct current transmission systems that will transport 6 GW of offshore wind energy to northern Germany.

The deal is part of contracts worth almost USD 33 billion following multiple deals signed in March 2023 to build converter stations and a transmission network in the North Sea to connect 40 GW of offshore wind assets to the Netherlands and Germany.