North Sea power line to connect wind farms to UK. Image source: GETTY IMAGES
According to plans unveiled by the UK and Dutch governments, a massive energy cable project in the North Sea could supply green power to 1.8 million homes in the UK.
The development of LionLink, a power line that will link offshore wind farms and enable the transmission of electricity between the two nations, has been revealed as part of a new arrangement between the National Grid and the Dutch electricity network TenneT.
The declaration was issued on Monday during an energy summit in Ostend, Belgium, as pressure mounts on European countries to uphold their climate commitments by lowering their reliance on fossil fuels and enhancing energy security.
By the beginning of the 2030s, the LionLink project is anticipated to be operational.
According to the government, LionLink will be the biggest cross-border electrical line in the world with a capacity of 1.8 GW.
Comparatively, the current connection between Germany and Denmark only transports 0.4GW.
The initiative, according to UK Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps, would improve the nation’s energy security and send President Putin of Russia a clear message that his dominance over the world’s power markets is no longer uncontested.
Due to the disruption caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year, energy costs in Europe skyrocketed.
The leaders of Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, and the United Kingdom emphasized in Politico that offshore wind plays a crucial role in addressing the climate crisis and protecting energy security, especially given that some ecosystems are currently deteriorating.
The UK government has pledged to stop adding greenhouse gases to the environment in order to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Experts agree that in order to do this, a considerable shift away from dirty energy sources like wind and solar power and toward fossil fuels like oil and gas is necessary.
Environmentalists and professionals, however, have criticized the existing plans as being insufficient.
The information concerning LionLink has been well-received by the energy and climate intelligence unit (ECIU).
The North Sea oil and gas basin is in terminal decline, according to ECIU’s Head of Energy, Jess Ralston, and without a rapid increase in the use of renewable energy sources, electric heat pumps, and fundamentals like home insulation, the basin will eventually run out of resources.
According to the government’s current strategy, imports are predicted to increase, but Jess Ralston added that partnerships like the LionLink project should improve energy resilience, lower household bills, and possibly even put the UK on a path to becoming a net energy exporter.