Tuesday 2 January 2024

National Grid activates world’s longest land and subsea interconnector

National Grid's Viking Link, the world's longest land and subsea interconnector, began commercial operations on 29th December 2023.

The £1.7 billion project connects the UK and Denmark through a 475-mile cable.

With a capacity of 1.4GW, Viking Link is set to transport electricity equivalent to powering up to 2.5 million UK homes.

The joint venture between National Grid and Danish System Operator, Energinet, marks a significant milestone in interconnecting nations for clean energy exchange.

The project is expected to yield cumulative savings of more than £500 million for UK consumers during its first decade.

Additionally, in its inaugural year, Viking Link is projected to save around 600,000 tonnes of carbon emissions.

Construction on Viking Link, National Grid's sixth interconnector, commenced in 2019, involving more than four million working hours.

Initially operating at 800MW capacity, it will gradually scale up to its full 1.4GW potential over the coming months.

National Grid is already looking ahead, having announced joint plans with TenneT for a new 1.8GW interconnector named LionLink between the UK and The Netherlands.

This second link between the countries is anticipated to be operational in the early 2030s.