UK Maps Out £54 Billion of Wiring to Connect Offshore Wind

(Bloomberg) -- National Grid Plc has laid out plans for a £54 billion upgrade to the electricity grid, the biggest investment since the 1950s, to connect up its growing fleet of offshore wind farms. 

The current government set a goal to reach 50 gigawatts of offshore wind capacity by the end of the decade, more than triple the amount generating power today. That will require a huge upgrade to cabling infrastructure to transport electricity from the turbines at sea to population centers in the south of England.

New transmission lines are necessary for the country’s energy transition but are often controversial with local populations who object to having massive pylons carrying electric cables and humming sub-stations. Some of the grid expansion will be carried out by companies including Iberdrola SA’s Scottish Power unit, SSE Plc and National Grid Plc. 

The plan “is a key step in providing certainty to offshore wind developers and mitigating potential impacts on the environment and local communities from energy infrastructure,” said Fintan Slye, executive director of National Grid’s electricity system operator.

The upgrades will be essential in making use of the electricity from a wave of new projects that have secured leases to Britain’s seabed, including at least 8 gigawatts of projects around England and Wales and some of the 25 gigawatts of wind farm sites that Scotland leased earlier this year. 

Britain committed to building more offshore wind with its biggest ever renewables auction on Thursday, helping reduce the country’s dependence on volatile fossil fuel prices and easing future bills for homes and businesses. 

Getting planning permission for long lines of cable can be difficult and lengthy especially if there are local objections. But it’s costly to run cables under the sea or bury them. There is a limit to how much power can be loaded onto the current grid before flows start to slow down and cause what’s called congestion. Building new lines will help prevent this.

The £54 billion investment figure assumes £32 billion for the offshore network to connect 23 gigawatts of capacity and £22 billion from the Network Options Assessment to enable the full 50 gigawatts, National Grid said.

Making efficient use of the power network will save consumers £5.5 billion, the equivalent of £2.18 per year on the average customer electricity bill, according to the report.

(Updates with consumer savings in final paragraph.)

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