It is viewed by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) as an essential element in achieving the Government’s Clean Power 2030 ambition, with Eastern Green Link 1 (EGL1) able to transport homegrown wind generated electricity between Torness in East Lothian and Hawthorn Pit in County Durham.
The majority of the 196km cable will be under the North Sea, with the remaining 20km of cables underground linking the capable to substations in Scotland and England.
It is hoped the project will reduce Great Britain’s reliance on the international gas market, which has proven to be volatile in recent years, with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic both causing issues.
The project is also expected to deliver annual savings of more than £870 million by reducing the need to compensate British wind generators who are currently asked to turn off production during high times of wind due to a lack of grid capacity, and it’s hope that will then drive down bills for the average household.
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Ofgem has also identified more than £43m of savings which have been cut from the project costs without impacting delivery or quality with communities that host the infrastructure in Scotland and North-East England to benefit from a new social value and community benefit fund worth £7.9m.
Beatrice Filkin, Ofgem Director of Major Projects, said: “Today’s announcement takes us another step closer to achieving Great Britain’s 2030 Clean Power ambitions. It means customers can reap the benefits of abundant homegrown wind faster, while also being increasingly shielded from volatile imported gas prices.
“Our fast-track process provides developers with access to some initial upfront funding from the projected budget, so they can secure the supply chain commitments needed to secure the sought-after materials to deliver this project as soon as possible.
“However streamlining our process does not mean we’ve handed a blank cheque to the developers. We’ve built in safeguards which mean we can step in where needed to ensure they deliver maximum efficiency and benefit to customers.”
EGL1 is the second of 26 ‘critical energy project’ which are worth an estimated £20bn to successful complete Ofgem’s new fast track Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) framework.
Earlier this year in August, Ofgem also approved a £3.4bn 500km electric superhighway from Aberdeenshire to North Yorkshire.
