RWE Goes For An Additional 10 GW Of Offshore Wind In UK Waters In 2030
This press release from RWE is entitled RWE And Masdar Join Forces To Develop 3 Gigawatts Of Offshore Wind Projects Off The UK Coast.
This is the last paragraph.
The UK plays a key role in RWE’s strategy to grow its offshore wind portfolio RWE is a leading partner in the delivery of the UK’s Net Zero ambitions and energy security, as well as in contributing to the UK build-out target for offshore wind of 50 GW by 2030. RWE already operates 10 offshore wind farms across the UK. Following completion of the acquisition of the three Norfolk offshore wind projects from Vattenfall announced at the end of 2023, RWE is developing nine offshore wind projects in the UK, representing a combined potential installed capacity of around 9.8 GW, with RWE’s pro rata share amounting to 7 GW. Furthermore, RWE is constructing the 1.4 GW Sofia offshore wind project in the North Sea off the UK’s east coast. RWE’s unparalleled track record of more than 20 years in offshore wind has resulted in 19 offshore wind farms in operation, with a goal to triple its global offshore wind capacity from 3.3 GW today to 10 GW in 2030.
Note.
- Nine offshore wind projects in the UK, representing a combined potential installed capacity of around 9.8 GW
- RWE are saying they intend to add 6.7 GW in 2030.
The eight offshore wind farms, that RWE are developing in UK waters would appear to be.
- Sofia – 1,400 MW
- Norfolk Boreas – 1380 MW
- Norfolk Vanguard East – 1380 MW
- Norfolk Vanguard West – 1380 MW
- Dogger Bank South – 3000 MW
- Awel y Môr – 500 MW
- Five Estuaries – 353 MW
- North Falls – 504 MW
This is a total of 9897 MW, which ties in well with RWE’s new capacity figure of 9.8 GW.
The Location Of RWE’s Offshore Wind Farms
RWE’s wind farms seem to fit in groups around the UK.
Dogger Bank
This wind farm is on the Dogger Bank.
- Dogger Bank South – 3000 MW – Planned
This wind farm would appear to be rather isolated in the middle of the North Sea.
RWE could have plans to extend it or even link it to other wind farms in the German area of the Dogger Bank.
Lincolnshire Coast
This wind farm is along the Lincolnshire Coast.
- Triton Knoll – 857 MW – 2022
As there probably isn’t much heavy industry, where Triton Knoll’s power comes ashore, this wind farm can provide the power needed in the area.
But any excess power in the area can be exported to Denmark through the Viking Link.
Norfolk Coast
These wind farms are along the Norfolk Coast.
- Norfolk Boreas – 1380 MW – Planned
- Norfolk Vanguard East – 1380 MW – Planned
- Norfolk Vanguard West – 1380 MW – Planned
These three wind farms will provide enough energy to provide the power for North-East Norfolk.
North Wales Coast
These wind farms are along the North Wales Coast.
- Awel y Môr – 500 MW – Planned
- Gwynt y Môr – 576 MW – 2015
- Rhyl Flats – 90 MW – 2009
- North Hoyle – 60 MW – 2003
These wind farms will provide enough energy for the North Wales Coast.
Any spare electricity can be stored in the 1.8 GW/9.1 GWh Dinorwig pumped storage hydroelectric power station.
Electric Mountain may have opened in 1984, but it is surely a Welsh giant decades ahead of its time.
Suffolk Coast
These wind farms are along the Suffolk Coast.
- Five Estuaries – 353 MW – Planned
- Galloper – 353 MW – 2018
- North Falls – 504 MW – Planned
These wind farms will provide enough energy for the Suffolk Coast, which except for the Haven Ports, probably doesn’t have many large electricity users.
But if the area is short of electricity, there will be Sizewell B nuclear power station to provide it.
Teesside
This wind farm is along the Teesside Coast
- Sofia – 1,400 MW – Planned
Teesside is a heavy user of electricity.
These six areas total as follows.
- Dogger Bank – 3,000 MW
- Lincolnshire Coast – 857 MW
- Norfolk Coast – 4140 MW
- North Wales Coast – 1226 MW
- Suffolk Coast – 1210 MW
- Teesside – 1,400 MW
Backup for these large clusters of wind farms for when the wind doesn’t blow will be provided as follows.
- Dogger Bank – Not provided
- Lincolnshire Coast- Interconnectors to Denmark and Scotland
- Norfolk Coast – Not provided
- North Wales Coast – Stored in Dinorwig pumped storage hydroelectric power station
- Suffolk Coast – Sizewell B and Sizewell C
- Teesside – Interconnectors to Norway and Scotland and Hartlepool nuclear power stations
Note.
- The interconnectors will typically have a 2 GW capacity.
- The 1.9 GW/9.1 GWh Dinorwig pumped storage hydroelectric power station must be one of the best wind farm backups in Europe.
There is a very solid level of integrated and connected assets that should provide a reliable power supply for millions of electricity users.
How Will Dogger Bank And The Norfolk Coast Wind Clusters Work Efficiently?
The Dogger Bank and the Norfolk Coast clusters will generate up to 3 and 4.14 GW respectively.
So what purpose is large amounts of electricity in the middle of the North Sea?
The only possible purpose will be to use giant offshore electrolysers to create hydrogen.
The hydrogen will then be transported to point of use by pipeline or tanker.
Feeding H2ercules
I described H2ercules in H2ercules.
H2ercules is an enormous project that will create the German hydrogen network.
The H2ercules web site, shows a very extensive project, as is shown by this map.
Note.
- Hydrogen appears to be sourced from Belgium, the Czech Republic, The Netherlands and Norway.
- RWE’s Dogger Bank South wind farm will be conveniently by the N of Norway.
- RWE’s Norfolk cluster of wind farms will be conveniently by the N of Netherlands.
- The Netherlands arrow points to the red circles of two hydrogen import terminals.
For Germany to regain its former industrial success, H2ercules will be needed to be fed with vast amounts of hydrogen.
And that hydrogen could be in large amounts from the UK sector of the North Sea.
Uniper’s Wilhelmshaven Hydrogen Hub
This page on the Uniper web site is entitled Green Wilhelmshaven: To New Horizons
This Uniper graphic shows a summary of gas and electricity flows in the Wilhelmshaven Hydrogen Hub.
Note.
- Ammonia can be imported, distributed by rail or ships, stored or cracked to provide hydrogen.
- Wilhelmshaven can handle the largest ships.
- Offshore wind energy can generate hydrogen by electrolysis.
- Hydrogen can be stored in underground salt caverns.
I suspect hydrogen could also be piped in from an electrolyser in the East of England or shipped in by a hydrogen tanker.
All of this is well-understood technology.
Sunak’s Magic Money Tree
Rishi Sunak promised a large giveaway of tax in his manifesto for the 2024 General Election.
As we are the only nation, who can provide the colossal amounts of hydrogen the Germans will need for H2ercules, I am sure we will be well paid for it.
A few days ago we celebrated D-Day, where along with the Americans and the Canadians, we invaded Europe.
Now eighty years later, our hydrogen is poised to invade Europe again, but this time for everybody’s benefit.
This document on the Policy Mogul web site is entitled Rishi Sunak – Conservative Party Manifesto Speech – Jun 11.
These are three paragraphs from the speech.
We don’t just need military and border security. As Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has shown, we need energy security too. It is only by having reliable, home-grown sources of energy that we can deny dictators the ability to send our bills soaring. So, in our approach to energy policy we will put security and your family finances ahead of unaffordable eco zealotry.
Unlike Labour we don’t believe that we will achieve that energy security via a state-controlled energy company that doesn’t in fact produce any energy. That will only increase costs, and as Penny said on Friday there’s only one thing that GB in Starmer and Miliband’s GB Energy stands for, and that’s giant bills.
Our clear plan is to achieve energy security through new gas-powered stations, trebling our offshore wind capacity and by having new fleets of small modular reactors. These will make the UK a net exporter of electricity, giving us greater energy independence and security from the aggressive actions of dictators . Now let me just reiterate that, with our plan, we will produce enough electricity to both meet our domestic needs and export to our neighbours. Look at that. A clear, Conservative plan not only generating security, but also prosperity for our country.
I believe that could be Rishi’s Magic Money Tree.
Especially, if the energy is exported through electricity interconnectors or hydrogen or ammonia pipelines and tankers.
Will This Be A Party Anyone Can Join?
Other wind farm clusters convenient for the H2ercules hydrogen import terminals on the North-West German coast include.
- Dogger Bank – SSE, Equinor – 5008 MW
- East Anglian – Iberdrola – 3786 MW
- Hornsea – Ørsted – 8056 MW
That totals to around 16.5 GW of wind power.
I can see offshore electrolysers producing hydrogen all around the coasts of the British Isles.
What Happens If Sunak Doesn’t Win The Election?
RWE and others have signed contracts to develop large wind farms around our shores.
They didn’t do that out of the goodness of their hearts, but to make money for themselves and their backers and shareholders.
Conclusion
I believe a virtuous circle will develop.
- Electricity will be generated in the UK.
- Some will be converted to hydrogen.
- Hydrogen and electricity will be exported to the highest bidders.
- European industry will, be powered by British electricity and hydrogen.
- Money will be paid to the UK and the energy suppliers for the energy.
The more energy we produce, the more we can export.
In the future more interconnectors, wind farms and electrolysers will be developed.
Everybody will benefit.
As the flows grow, this will certainly become a Magic Money Tree, for whoever wins the election.
Ørsted, Simply Blue, Subsea7 Submit Application For 100 MW Scottish Floating Wind Farm
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Ørsted, Simply Blue Group and Subsea7, through their joint venture partnership in Scotland, have submitted an offshore consent application for the proposed 100 MW Salamander floating offshore wind farm, one of the 13 projects selected in Scotland’s Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) leasing round.
The article starts with a map that shows the location of the Salamander floating offshore wind farm and it shows how the sea is getting very crowded 35 kilometres off Peterhead.
This map shows the various ScotWind leases, around the North of Scotland.
The numbers are Scotwind’s lease number in their documents.
These are the Scotwind wind farms to the North-East of Scotland.
- 1 – BP Alternative Energy Investments – 859 km² – 2.9 GW – Fixed
- 2 – SSE Renewables – 859 km² – 2.6 GW – Floating
- 3 – Falck Renewables Wind – 280 km² – 1.2 GW – Floating
- 4 – Shell – 860 km² – 2.0 GW – Floating
- 5 – Vattenfall – 200 km² – 0.8 GW – Floating
- 6 – DEME – 187 km² – 1.0 GW – Fixed
- 9 – Ocean Winds – 429 km² – 1.0 GW – Fixed
- 10 – Falck Renewables Wind – 134 km² – 0.5 GW – Floating
- 11 – Scottish Power Renewables – 684 km² – 3.0 GW – Floating
- 12 – BayWa r.e. UK – 330 km² – 1.0 GW – Floating
Note.
- Salamander is located to the South of wind farms 10, 11 and 12 and to the North-West of wind farm 5.
- These windfarms total up to 16 GW.
- 4.9 GW are fixed foundation wind farms.
- 11.1 GW are floating wind farms.
These are my thoughts.
The Salamander Project
In the big scheme of things, the 100 MW Salamander wind farm, is rather a tiddler of a wind farm.
On the Salamander wind farm web site, a section gives the Project Goals.
- Our innovative pre-commercial stepping-stone concept will use novel floating foundations to (i) maximise Scottish content, (ii) enable the Scottish supply chain to gear up for the future floating offshore wind commercial opportunities in ScotWind and (iii) reduce the financial, environmental and technology risks of floating offshore wind.
- The Salamander project will contribute to the Scottish Government and UK Government net-zero targets. The project can contribute to the Scottish government’s target of 11 GW of installed offshore wind by 2030, as well as the UK government’s target of 5 GW of operational floating offshore wind by the same date.
- We are dedicated to developing a sustainable and transformative project, working with the oceans, and enabling communities to benefit from Project Salamander. Therefore, we commit to having a continuous and strong stakeholder and community engagement.
It appears to me, that the Salamander project will be a pathfinder for the 11.1 GW of floating wind farms to be built off Peterhead.
Bringing The Electricity South
National Grid are building four interconnectors between Eastern Scotland and Eastern England.
- Eastern Green Link 1 – Torness and Hawthorn Pit
- Eastern Green Link 2 – Peterhead and Drax
- Eastern Green Link 3 – Westfield and Lincolnshire
- Eastern Green Link 4 – Peterhead and Lincolnshire
Note.
- All interconnectors are 2 GW.
- All interconnectors are offshore for a long part of their route.
- It also appears that National Grid are burying much of the onshore sections.
But the 4 GW of interconnectors will only be able to bring a quarter of the offshore electricity generated in the Peterhead area to the South.
What Will Happen To The Excess Electricity?
Consider.
- There could be 16 GW of planned offshore wind power around Peterhead and North-East Scotland.
- There is only 4 GW of interconnector capacity between Peterhead and Eastern England.
- There is another 6.8 GW of electricity around North-West Scotland.
- There is 2.8 GW of electricity being developed to the East of Shetland.
- The Crown Estate is thinking of increasing the size of some offshore wind farms.
It is likely, that other wind farms will be built in the seas around the North of Scotland.
It appears that the North of Scotland could have at least 20 GW of excess electricity.
Possible solutions would include.
- Developing energy intensive industries like metal refining.
- More interconnectors to Denmark, England, Ireland and Norway.
- Storage of the electricity in giant pumped storage hydroelectric power stations.
- Creation of green hydrogen for export.
Note.
- Aluminium refining has been developed in the North of Scotland before.
- More interconnectors are a possibility, especially as Scotland is developing cable manufacturing capacity.
- Some maps show extra interconnectors between West Scotland and Merseyside.
- At least 70 GWh of pumped storage hydroelectric power stations are being developed along the Great Glen.
- I suspect that the pumped storage hydroelectric power stations could be connected to the wind farms, by cables under the waters of Loch Ness.
But surely, production of green hydrogen for export would be a very good way to go.
- Extra electrolysers could be added as required.
- Because of the interconnectors down both East and West Coasts, electrolysers could be built in England, where there is a large need for hydrogen.
- Hydrogen would be exported initially by tanker ships.
- At some point in the future, it might be viable to build a hydrogen pipeline to connect to the growing European hydrogen network.
The giant pumped storage hydroelectric power stations and the hydrogen electrolysers would be sized to make sure, that no wind power is never wasted.
Conclusion
The 100 MW Salamander floating wind farm may only be small, but it will prove the technology, the manufacturing and the supply chains, so that Scotland can have a second energy boom from the North Sea.
But this boom will certainly last longer than a hundred years.
Ireland Charts Course For 37 GW Offshore Wind Development
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Irish Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan, has launched the Future Framework for Offshore Renewable Energy, which provides a roadmap for Ireland to deliver 37 GW of offshore wind by 2050.
This is the introductory paragraph.
The framework sets out the pathway Ireland will take to deliver 20 GW of offshore wind by 2040 and at least 37 GW in total by 2050. Critically, it also provides the evidence base for Ireland’s offshore renewable energy (ORE) targets.
This document from the UK Government, which is called Offshore Wind Net Zero Investment Roadmap, says this.
With the highest deployment in Europe, we have proved that offshore
wind can be delivered at ever increasing scale whilst decreasing the
costs to consumers.
The UK has a world-leading ambition to deploy up to 50GW by 2030,
with up to 5GW coming from floating offshore wind.
Irish ambitions look to be more or less in line with the UK’s.
These are some further thoughts.
Ireland Interconnectors
These are interconnectors connecting Ireland to the UK and Europe.
- Celtic Interconnector – 700 MW – Between the southern coast of Ireland and the north-west coast of France.
- East-West Interconnector – 500 MW – Between Portan in Ireland to Shotton in Wales.
- Green Link – 500 MW – Between County Wexford and Pembrokeshire.
- Moyle Interconnector – 500 MW – Between Scotland and Northern Ireland.
If Ireland is going to install 37 GW of offshore wind, as opposed to about 4.7 GW in total generation now, I suspect Ireland will need more interconnectors or industries, that need a lot of GWs.
World’s First Energy Island Starts Taking Shape – Video
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
The first of the 23 caissons being built for Princess Elisabeth Island in Vlissingen, the Netherlands, is almost finished and will be immersed in the North Sea this summer. The artificial Belgian energy island is a world first.
Note.
- This web site is the web site of Belgium’s Princess Elisabeth energy island.
- This YouTube video describes the Princess Elisabeth island.
The video shows the importance of this project, that will have interconnectors to both the UK and Denmark, and connections to a large number of offshore wind farms.
These two paragraphs describe the roll-out of the caissons.
When the caissons are ready, a semi-submersible vessel will transport them further down the harbour, where they will be placed in the water and temporarily stored. They will then be moved to their final location in the North Sea this summer, weather permitting.
The caissons will form the outer walls of the energy island. The island itself will be created using approximately 2.3 million square metres of sand, extracted locally. The island will be finished in late 2026, when the electrical equipment can start to be installed. Contracts for this will be tendered this year.
These pictures show four Pheonix Caissons from Mulberry Harbours that are used as a museum in The Netherlands.
Nothing is new! But at least the Belgians won’t have to tow their caissons across the Channel under enemy fire.
A Video Description Of Princess Elisabeth Island
This web site is the web site of Belgium’s Princess Elisabeth energy island.
This YouTube video describes the Princess Elisabeth island.
From the video the following can be determined.
- The Princess Elisabeth island is 45 km. from the Belgian coast.
- An interconnector to the UK could come ashore at the site of the decommissioned Bradwell nuclear power station.
- An interconnector to Denmark could come ashore in Southern Jutland, just North of where the Viking Link connects to Denmark.
This map clipped from the video shows the location of Princess Elisabeth island.
Note.
- Belgium is shown in red.
- Istend is in the middle of the straight Belgian coast.
- The red dot between Belgium and the UK is Princess Elisabeth island.
- The interconnector to the UK could feasibly go to Bradwell.
- The interconnector to Denmark could go via a wind farm, which would explain the kink.
- Could the kink point be at the Dogger Bank, where there could be 20 GW of wind farms?
Has Belgium made a bid to dominate European energy distribution?
This Google Map shows the Belgian and English coast lines.
Note.
- Bradwell is on the coast to the North-East of Southend-on-Sea.
- As it used to be a nuclear power station site it still has an electricity connection to the grid.
- The Princess Elisabeth island is 45 km. from the Belgian coast at Ostend.
I estimate that a Bradwell and Princess Elisabeth island interconnector would be about 150 miles.
Denmark Launches Massive Offshore Wind Auction
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Denmark has opened a new offshore wind tender, the country’s largest ever, offering a minimum of 6 GW of new capacity spread over six wind farms, with the overplanting option allowing for 10 GW or more of new capacity to be added.
These are two paragraphs from the article.
The offshore wind farms must deliver at least 6 GW, and as a new element, there will be freedom to establish as much offshore wind as possible on the tendered areas, with the exemption of Hesselø with a maximum capacity of 1.2 GW.
If the market utilizes this freedom to optimize the usage of the areas, it could result in the construction of 10 GW offshore wind or more, the agency said.
Recently, some wind farms in the UK have been increased in size after the auction.
In Crown Estate Mulls Adding 4 GW Of Capacity From Existing Offshore Wind Projects, I note how 4 GW of overplanting could be employed to raise the total capacity from 4.6 GW to 8.6 GW.
So have the Danes decided to build expansion into the tender?
One of the wind farms in the auction is called Nordsøen I.
- It will be about 50 km. from the West Coast of Denmark.
- It appears it will have a capacity of at least 1 GW.
- It could connect to the shore, not far from where the Viking Link between Lincolnshire and Denmark connects to the Danish grid.
- There is a 700 MW interconnector between the area and Eemshaven in The Netherlands.
- There is 1.5 GW of overland transmission lines to Germany.
All these connections, increase energy security for Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK.
Could the Danes be building the Nordsøen I, so it could work with the all the connections in Southern Jutland and improve energy security?
National Grid Launches Viking Link, The Next Step Towards A North Sea Super-Grid
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from National Grid.
These four bullet points act as sub-headings.
- The £1.8bn project connecting the UK with Denmark was launched today.
- With a capacity of 1.4GW, Viking Link will be able to power up to 2.5 million UK homes and is the longest land and subsea cable in the world.
- Viking Link will deliver £5.2bn in benefits to UK consumers.
- As the UK’s first connection with renewable energy-rich Denmark, Viking Link will be instrumental in both countries achieving net zero carbon emissions.
The press release then gives all the details of the latest of National Grid’s sixth interconnector.
As a Control Engineer, I like this interconnector.
- Denmark and the UK are both importers of electricity.
- The UK has 30 GW of wind power and Denmark has 7 GW.
- The UK has almost 15 GW of solar power and Denmark has 3.5 GW.
- The UK has 6 GW of nuclear and Denmark banned nuclear in 1985.
- Both the UK and Denmark use large amounts of biomass to generate electricity.
- As the sun goes East to West, Denmark will produce its daily peak solar before the UK.
- If the prevailing winds go West to East, the UK will produce its daily peak wind before Denmark.
It looks to me that a UK-Denmark interconnector could perform a valuable job, by balancing the UK’s electricity peaks and troughs with those of Denmark.
The system could be improved in two ways.
- If Southern England has a sunny, windy day, there may be need for substantial energy storage.
- The route between the UK and Denmark could be via a large offshore wind farm in the North Sea.
Vind∅ is a proposed Danish energy island in the North Sea.
There’s more about the Viking Link on its web site.
This is the introduction on the home page.
Viking Link is a 1400 MW high voltage direct current (DC) electricity link between the British and Danish transmission systems connecting at Bicker Fen substation in Lincolnshire and Revsing substation in southern Jutland, Denmark.
The project involves the construction of converter sites and installation of onshore and offshore cable in each country. These are then connected to the substations.
Viking Link is approximately 765 km long and allows electricity to be exchanged between Great Britain and Denmark.
The interconnector enables the more effective use of renewable energy, access to sustainable electricity generation and improved security of electricity supplies. It also benefits the socio economy of both countries.
This is going to be a very valuable interconnector for the UK, Denmark and those that own it.
UK ESO Unveils GBP 58 Billion Grid Investment Plan To Reach 86 GW of Offshore Wind By 2035
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Great Britain’s electricity system operator (ESO) has proposed a GBP 58 billion (approximately EUR 68 billion) investment in the electricity grid. The proposal outlines a vision for incorporating an additional 21 GW of offshore wind into the grid by 2035, which would bring the country’s total offshore wind capacity to a potential 86 GW.
These three paragraphs add more details to what the investment in the grid means for offshore wind.
The ESO released on 19 March the first Beyond 2030 report. The plan sets up the necessary infrastructure to transfer power to and from future industries, as electricity demand is expected to rise by 64 per cent by 2035, according to the ESO.
The grid operator said that the plan connects a further 21 GW of offshore wind in development off the coast of Scotland to the grid in an efficient and coordinated way which would bring the country’s total offshore wind capacity to a potential 86 GW.
The proposals could assist the UK government in meeting the sixth Carbon Budget and allow for the connection of Crown Estate Scotland’s ScotWind leasing round.
These are my thoughts.
How Much Offshore Wind Is In The Pipeline?
This Wikipedia entry is a List Of Offshore Wind Farms In The United Kingdom.
It gives these figures for wind farms in various operational an development states.
- Operational – 14,703 MW
- Under Construction – 5,202 MW
- Pre-Construction – 6,522 MW
- Contracts for Difference – Round 3 – 12 MW
- Contracts for Difference – Round 4 – 1,428 MW
- Early Planning – England – 18,423 MW
- Early Planning – Wales – 700 MW
- Early Planning – Scotland – 30,326 MW
Note.
- These add up to a total of 77,316 MW.
- If all the wind farms in the Wikipedia entry are commissioned, the UK will be short of the 86,000 MW total by 8,664 MW.
- Some wind farms like Ossian could be increased in size by a few GW, as I reported in Ossian Floating Wind Farm Could Have Capacity Of 3.6 GW.
It looks like only another 7,164 MW of offshore wind needs to be proposed to meet the required total.
This article on offshoreWIND.biz is entitled The Crown Estate Opens 4.5 GW Celtic Sea Floating Wind Seabed Leasing Round, will add another 4,500 MW to the total, which will raise the total to 81,816 MW.
The article also finishes with this paragraph.
Round 5 is expected to be the first phase of development in the Celtic Sea. In November 2023, the UK Government confirmed its intention to unlock space for up to a further 12 GW of capacity in the Celtic Sea.
A further 12 GW of capacity will take the total to 93,816 MW.
In Three Shetland ScotWind Projects Announced, I talked about three extra Scotwind wind farms, that were to be developed to the East of Shetland.
These will add 2.8 GW, bringing the total to 96,616 MW.
I don’t think the UK has a problem with installing 86 GW of offshore wind by 2035, so we must create the electricity network to support it.
The Electricity Network In 2024
I clipped this map from this article in The Telegraph, which is entitled Britain’s Energy System Will Not Hit Net Zero Until 2035, National Grid Tells Labour.
The dark blue lines are the 400 kV transmission lines.
- The one furthest East in East Anglia serves the Sizewell site, which hosts the Sizewell B nuclear power station and will be the home of Sizewell C nuclear power station, unless the Green or LibDem Parties are a member of a coalition government.
- Kent and Sussex seem to be encircled by 400 kV lines, with small spurs to the interconnectors to Europe.
- Two 400 kV lines appear to serve the South-West peninsular, with one going along the South Coast and the other further North. I suspect these two motorways for electricity explain, why the Morocco-UK Power Project terminates in Devon.
- London seems to have its own M25 for electricity.
- There also appears to be an East-West link to the North of London linking Sizewell in the East and Pembroke in the West. Both ends have large power stations.
- There also appear to be two 400 kV lines from Keadby by the Humber Estuary to North Wales with the pumped storage hydro power station at Dinorwig.
- Two more 400 kV lines link Yorkshire to the South of Scotland.
- A lonely Northern cable connects Edinburgh and the North of Scotland.
The red lines, like the one encircling central London are the 275 kV transmission lines.
- Think of these as the A roads of the electricity network.
- They encircle London often deep underground or under canal towpaths.
- They reinforce the electricity network in South Wales.
- Liverpool appears to have its own local network.
- They also seem to provide most of the capacity North of and between Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Newer cables are starting to appear on this map.
There are two light blue cables and these are HVDC cables that run underwater.
- The 1.2 GW Caithness – Moray Link does what it says in the name and it connects the far North of Scotland direct towards Aberdeen.
- The much larger 2.25 GW Western HVDC Link connects Hunterston near Glasgow to Flintshire Bridge near Liverpool. Note how it passes to the West of the Isle of Man.
Not shown on the map are the smaller 500 MW Moyle Interconnector and the recently-opened 600 MW Shetland HVDC Connection.
The Electricity Network In 2050
This second map shows how the network will look in 2050.
Note.
- The colours are the same, as the previous map.
- Although, I do think there are some errors in which have been used.
- There are a lot more cables.
There are several more light blue cables and these are HVDC cables that run underwater.
- Shetland is now linked to the North of Scotland by the Shetland HVDC Connection.
- There appears to be a cluster of HVDC interconnectors at Caithness HVDC switching station, near Wick, including a new one to Orkney, to go with the others to Moray and Shetland.
- The 2 GW Scotland England Green Link 1 will run from Torness in Southeast Scotland to Hawthorn Pit substation in Northeast England.
- The 2 GW Eastern Green Link 2 will run from Sandford Bay, at Peterhead in Scotland, to the Drax Power Station in Yorkshire, England.
- There also appear to be two or possibly three other offshore cables linking the East Coast of Scotland with the East Coast of England.
- If the Eastern cables are all 2 GW, that means there is a trunk route for at least 8 GW between Scotland’s wind farms in the North-East and Eastern England, which has the high capacity wind farms of Dogger Bank, Hornsea and around the Lincolnshire and East Angliam coasts.
- Turning to the Western side of Scotland, there appears to be a HVDC connection between the Scottish mainland and the Outer Hebrides.
- South-West of Glasgow, the Western HVDC Link appears to have been duplicated, with a second branch connecting Anglesey and North-West Wales to Scotland.
- The Moyle Interconnector must be in there somewhere.
- Finally, in the South a link is shown between Sizewell and Kent. It’s shown as 400 kV link but surely it would be a HVDC underwater cable.
There are also seven stubs reaching out into the sea, which are probably the power cables to the wind farms.
- The red one leading from South Wales could connect the wind farms of the Celtic Sea.
- The blue link North of Northern Ireland could link the MachairWind wind farm to the grid.
- The other two red links on the West Coast of Scotland could link to other ScotWind wind farms.
- The red link to the North of East Anglia could link RWE’s Norfolk wind farms to the grid.
- The other stubs in the East could either connect wind farms to the grid or be multi-purpose interconnectors linking to Germany and the Netherlands.
It looks to me, that National Grid ESO will be taking tight control of the grid and the connected wind farms, as an integrated entity.
As a Graduate Control Engineer, I can’t disagree with that philosophy.
Hydrogen Production
In How Germany Is Dominating Hydrogen Market, I talked about how Germany’s plans to use a lot of hydrogen, will create a large world-wide demand, that the UK because of geography and large amounts of renewable energy is in an ideal place to fulfil.
I can see several large electrolysers being built around the UK coastline and I would expect that National Grid ESO have made provision to ensure that the electrolysers have enough electricity.
Would I Do Anything Different?
Consider.
- If it is built the Morocco-UK Power Project will terminates in Devon.
- There could be more wind farms in the Celtic Sea.
- It is likely, that the wind farms in the Celtic Sea will connect to both Pembroke and Devon.
- Kent has interconnectors to the Continent.
Would a Southern HVDC link along the South Coast between Devon and Kent be a good idea?
Conclusion
Looking at the proposed list of wind farms, a total in excess of 96 GW could be possible, which is ten GW more than needed.
The network not only serves the UK in a comprehensive manner, but also tees up electricity for export to Europe.
UK Energy Grid Needs £60bn Upgrade To Hit Green Target, Plan Says
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
The UK’s electricity network needs almost a further £60bn of upgrades to hit government decarbonisation targets by 2035, according to a new plan.
These five paragraphs explain the plan.
About 4,000 miles of undersea cables and 1,000 miles of onshore power lines are needed, said the National Grid’s Electricity Systems Operator (ESO).
The investment would add between £20 to £30 a year to customer bills, it said.
The government said the ESO’s plans were preliminary and yet to pass a “robust planning process”.
The plans were written up by the ESO, the organisation which runs the electricity network and would run the updated system it is calling for too. It is currently owned by National Grid but will transfer into government ownership later this year.
Its latest £58bn estimate is for work needed between 2030 and 2035 and comes on top of a previous £54bn estimate for work taking place between now and 2030.
These are my thoughts.
The Amount Of Undersea Cable
Edinburgh and London are roughly 400 miles apart as the train runs, so it looks like there could be the equivalent of ten underwater cables between the North of Scotland and England.
In Contracts Signed For Eastern Green Link 2 Cable And Converter Stations, I talked about the proposed 2 GW link between Peterhead in Scotland and Drax in England, which will be a double cable. So there’s the first two of these long cables.
It looks to me, that National Grid are proposing to use underwater cables wherever they can, so they avoid large expensive planning rows stirred up by Nimbies.
Monitoring The Undersea Cables
Last week Ofgem gave National Grid a £400,000 grant to develop new innovative technologies, which I wrote about in £400k For National Grid Innovation Projects As Part Of Ofgem Fund To Help Shape Britain’s Net Zero Transition.
One of the project is called HIRE – Hybrid-Network Improvement & Reliability Enhancement and will be used to check all these cables are performing as they should.
My electrical engineering experience tells me, that there must be some cunning way, that will detect that something is happening to the cable. The involvement of a technology company called Monitra in the project is a bit of a giveaway.
How Much Will It Cost Me?
Currently, UK consumers pay about £30 per year to have electricity delivered, so this will rise to between £50 and £60 per year.
That is just over a pound a week. I would pay about the same for a resident’s parking permit outside my house for an electric car and probably three times more for a petrol or diesel car.
Do We Have Enough Cable?
Two undersea cable factories are under development in Scotland and I suspect the 4,000 miles of undersea cables will be delivered on schedule and covered in saltires.
What About T-Pylons?
The latest onshore electricity transmission line between Hinckley Point C and Bristol, doesn’t use traditional pylons.
It uses T-pylons like these to connect the 3.26 GW nuclear power station.
Note that they are shorter, designed to be less intrusive, have a smaller footprint and are made from only ten parts.
I suspect they will cost less to install and maintain.
There is more on T-pylons in National Grid Energise World’s First T-Pylons.
I wouldn’t be surprised that some of the oldest traditional pylons will be replaced by T-pylons.
I am surprised that T-pylons are not mentioned in the BBC article.
I like T-pylons. How do you feel about them?
Eastern Green Link 2
This press release from National Grid, describes Eastern Green Link 2 like this.
Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL2) is a 525kV, 2GW high voltage direct current (HVDC) subsea transmission cable from Peterhead in Scotland to Drax in England delivered as a joint venture by National Grid and SSEN Transmission.
This map from National Grid, shows the route of the Eastern Green Link 2.
The Northern landfall is at Sandford Bay and the Southern landfall is at Wilsthorpe Beach.
This Google Map shows Sandford Bay and Peterhead power station.
Note.
- Sandford Bay occupies the North-East corner of the map.
- The red arrow indicates the main 400kV sub-station at Peterhead.
- The 2177 MW gas-fired Peterhead power station is to the East of the sub-station marked as SSE.
This second Google Map shows the onshore route of the cable from Wilsthorpe to Drax.
Note.
- Flamborough Head is in the North-East corner of the map.
- Wilsthorpe Beach is at Bridlington a couple of miles South of Flamborough Head.
- The red arrow indicates Drax Power station.
- An onshore underground cable will be installed from landfall in Wilsthorpe to a new onshore converter station built in Drax.
The EGL2 HVDC cable connection from Scotland to England consists of 436km of submarine cable and 69km of onshore cable.
Both converter stations will be on existing power station sites and the major onshore works will be the underground cable between Wilsthorpe and Drax.
Where Does Drax Go From Here?
Currently, Drax power station is a 2595 MW biomass-fired power station.
There are now other large power sources that could replace some or all of the output of Drax power station.
- 2GW of Scottish wind power coming to Drax on Eastern Green Link 2.
- 6 GW of offshore wind is being developed at the Hornsea wind farms.
- 8 GW of offshore wind is being developed at the Dogger Bank wind farms.
- 2.5 GW from the three gas-fired power stations at Keadby, two of which are likely to be fitted with carbon capture.
- 1.8 GW from the proposed hydrogen-fired Keadby Hydrogen power station.
Given the bad feelings many have about Drax burning biomass, with 20.3 GW of electricity, you might think that shutting down Drax would be a simple solution.
But, according to Drax’s Wikipedia entry, it has a unique property.
Despite this intent for baseload operation, it was designed with a reasonable ability for load-following, being able to ramp up or down by 5% of full power per minute within the range of 50–100% of full power.
So Drax could be very useful in balancing the grid, by ramping up and down to fill the gap between production and need.
In addition, there is good biomass. This is from the Wikipedia entry.
A 100,000 tonne pa capacity straw pelletization facility was constructed at Capitol Park, Goole in 2008.
Drax are also promoting BECCS or Bioenergy carbon-capture and storage.
There is a Wikipedia entry for Bioenergy With Carbon Capture And Storage, of which this is the first couple of sentences.
Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) is the process of extracting bioenergy from biomass and capturing and storing the carbon, thereby removing it from the atmosphere. BECCS can theoretically be a “negative emissions technology” (NET).
I do feel that carbon capture and storage is a bit like sweeping the dust under the carpet, when you sweep the floor around it.
But carbon capture and use could be another matter.
This Google Map shows the Drax site.
Note how it is surrounded by agricultural land.
Could the power station be the source of pure carbon dioxide to be fed in greenhouses to flowers, herbs, salad vegetables, tomatoes and other plants?
I suspect there’s productive life left in Drax power station yet!
LionLink
LionLink, that is being developed by National Grid is a new type of interconnector, called a multi-purpose interconnector, that will connect Suffolk and The Netherlands via any convenient wind farms on the way. This means that the electricity generated can go where it is needed most.
I wrote about LionLink in World’s Largest-Of-Its-Kind Power Line To Deliver Clean Power To 1.8m UK Homes And Boost Energy Security.
Other Multi-Purpose Interconnectors
I can see other multi-purpose interconnectors like LionLink being built around the UK.
- There could be one across the Dogger Bank to link out 8 GW of Dogger Bank wind farms with those of the Dutch, Danes and Germans on their section of the bank.
- NorthConnect could be built between Scotland and Norway via some of the wind farms being developed to the North-East of Scotland.
- Could wind farms to the North of Ireland use a multi-purpose interconnector between Scotland and Northern Ireland.
- I can also see one or possibly two, being built across the Celtic Sea to link Devon, South Wales and Southern Ireland via the wind farms being developed in the area.
- Will we also see a Channel multi-purpose interconnector to transfer electricity along the South Coast of England?
Some of these multi-purpose interconnectors could be key to creating a revenue stream, by exporting electricity, to countries in Europe, that have a pressing need for it.
Conclusion
National Grid’s excellent plan will lead to the end of the practice of shutting down wind turbines. The spare electricity will be exported to Europe, which will surely create a good cash-flow for the UK. This in turn will encourage developers to create more wind farms in the seas around the UK’s coasts.
Contracts Signed For Eastern Green Link 2 Cable And Converter Stations
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from National Grid.
These four bullet points, act as sub-headings.
- Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL2) is a 525kV, 2GW high voltage direct current (HVDC) subsea transmission cable from Peterhead in Scotland to Drax in England delivered as a joint venture by National Grid and SSEN Transmission
- The joint venture has signed a contract with the Prysmian Group to supply around 1,000km of cable for the project and a contract with Hitachi Energy and BAM for the supply of converter stations at either end of the subsea cable
- Contract signing is a significant milestone for the project as it progresses towards the delivery phase
- EGL2 will be the longest HVDC cable in the UK and the UK’s single largest electricity transmission project ever, providing enough electricity to power two million UK homes
This paragraph outlines the project.
EGL2, a joint venture between SSEN Transmission and National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), has reached another milestone in the development of a new subsea electricity superhighway after sealing contracts this week with specialist HVDC cable supplier, Prysmian, and with Hitachi Energy and BAM for the supply of converter stations at either end of the project.
These four paragraphs add more detail.
EGL2 will see the creation of a 525kV, 2GW HVDC subsea transmission cable from Peterhead in Scotland to Drax in England. The longest HVDC cable in the UK and the UK’s single largest electricity transmission project ever, it will provide enough electricity to power two million UK homes.
Prysmian has confirmed it has the capability to deliver the project with its manufacturing facilities for the production of the HVDC cable and its cable laying vessels for the installation in the timescale required for EGL2 to meet its targeted energisation date in 2029, supporting the timely delivery of this project and mitigating risks associated with global constraints in the HVDC supply chain.
Hitachi Energy is partnering with BAM to provide the engineering works and technology for the HVDC converter stations which form the terminals for the HVDC cable and convert direct current to the alternating current used in the onshore transmission network. This latest milestone is another significant step as the project moves towards delivery and, following final approval from Ofgem, work is expected to commence later this year, with a targeted operational date of 2029.
The subsea HVDC cable system is approximately 436km in length with new converter stations at either end to connect it into the existing transmission network infrastructure. HVDC technology provides the most efficient and reliable means of transmitting large amounts of power over long distances subsea.
Note.
- EGL2 can handle 2 GW.
- There is a targeted operational date of 2029.
- Eastern Green Link 2 now has its own web site.
- Most of these links now seem to be HVDC.
A map in the press release, shows the undersea route may be shorter.
It also appears to me, that moving electricity around the UK under the sea, is possibly the most environmentally-friendly and least intrusive way to do it.
We already have four HVDC interconnectors.
There will be many more,
The Anonymous Widower 