Ofgem green lights funding for £2bn undersea power cable

(Sharecast News) - Britain's energy regulator has given the funding green light for a £2bn subsea and underground cable which transport electricity from wind farms in Scotland to the North East.

The 196km-long cable will be mainly laid under the North Sea, is expected to bolster the UK's energy security and cut customer bills by £870m per year by reducing the need to compensate British wind generators who are currently asked to turn off production during times of high wind due to lack of grid capacity.

"The project will reduce Great Britain's reliance on volatile international gas markets by further harnessing the power of homegrown North Sea wind," Ofgem said on Friday.

Eastern Green Link 1  is a planned 2GW high voltage direct current multi directional subsea cable to be built between the Torness area in East Lothian, Scotland and Hawthorn Pit in County Durham, England and will power around two million homes.

The bulk of the cable - 176km - would be subsea with the remaining 20km of cable undergrounded onshore.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com