Work has begun on Viking Link, an interconnector which will allow the exchange of electricity between Denmark and the UK.
This 765km long undersea cable will stretch 765km to link Bicker Fen in Lincolnshire with Revsing in Denmark, connecting the energy systems of the two countries.
The project is a joint venture between National Grid Ventures and the Danish electricity system owner and operator, Energinet.
Electrical interconnectors are high-voltage cables that connect the energy networks of neighbouring countries.
They allow excess energy, sourced from wind and solar farms in especially windy and sunny weather or hydroelectricity, to be traded and shared between countries.
This reduces waste and makes for a cleaner, more efficient power system.
When it’s completed, Viking Link will have the capacity to supply enough renewable energy to power one and a half million UK homes.
By 2030, 90% of electricity imported via National Grid’s interconnectors will be from zero carbon sources.
The first stage of building Viking Link, which is in total expected to take three years, involves creating a 2.4km long access road for a converter station that will be sited in Bicker Fen, Lincolnshire.
The permanent road will take nine months to complete and is being constructed by Siemens Energy.
It will initially enable access for transporting major construction equipment to the site and then later on, when the converter station has been completed, it’ll be used by operational vehicles.
