Energy / ‘Milestone’ reached in plans for second HVDC cable
A “MAJOR milestone” has been reached in plans to install a second subsea HVDC cable between Shetland and the Scottish mainland, according to SSEN.
SSEN Transmission has now entered into a ‘capacity reservation agreement’ with Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd and consortium partner Van Oord for the supply and installation of the second link.
A key driver for the proposed link – which could be 1.8GW in capacity – is providing an export route for offshore wind farms which are mooted for the east of Shetland.
The first HVDC link between Shetland and Caithness on the mainland, which has a capacity of 600MW, went live last year and allows the Viking wind farm to export power.
Once Lerwick Power Station goes into standby mode next year Shetland as a whole will then be connected to the national grid via the cable.
Cable manufacture for the “Shetland 2” project is set to be delivered from Sumitomo’s new £350 million facility in Nigg in the north east of Scotland, which is under construction.
Cables of this type and technology have never previously been manufactured in the UK.
Managing director of SSEN Transmission Rob McDonald said: “We are delighted to reach this major milestone with Sumitomo and Van Oord for the Shetland 2 project.
“It’s great to see the progress being made at Sumitomo’s new cable manufacturing facility and we are extremely proud to be supporting their investment and the major boost to the Highland economy this will unlock.”
Energy minister Michael Shanks said: “Our mission to make Britain a clean energy superpower brings with it vast opportunities to invest in our highly-skilled British supply chains, creating thousands of jobs in Scotland and across the UK.
“Sumitomo’s manufacturing facility is a fantastic example of the world-leading offshore expertise here in Scotland – which will play a huge part in the expansion of the UK’s homegrown clean energy sector.”
The need for a second HVDC link from Shetland to the main GB transmission system was confirmed by the independent electricity system operator National Grid ESO as part of its latest nationwide strategic network plan, Beyond 2030.
As well as helping enable the connection of three ScotWind offshore wind farm sites adjacent to Shetland, which have a combined generating capacity of up to 2.8GW, SSEN Transmission said Shetland 2 will also “support decarbonisation and energy security ambitions, alongside helping further secure Shetland’s future electricity needs”.
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