What Are Offshore Hybrid Assets?
The title of this post is the same as that of a story explaining energy from National Grid.
This is the sub-heading.
Offshore Hybrid Assets or OHAs (formerly known as multi-purpose interconnectors) are a new generation of subsea technology that will connect clusters of offshore wind farms to multiple countries.
This is the first paragraph.
OHAs will help to speed up the connection of offshore wind and maximise the use of wind generation. They will also reduce the impact on local communities by reducing the amount of connection points and onshore infrastructure required to connect this clean energy to the shore.
The story goes on to discuss OHAs and how they are being developed.
It is very much a must read.
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.
Octopus Energy Creates GBP 3 Billion Offshore Wind Fund
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Octopus Energy’s generation arm has launched a dedicated fund with Japan’s Tokyo Gas to invest GBP 3 billion (approximately EUR 3.5 billion) in offshore wind globally by 2030.
This is the first paragraph.
The fund, set up with a GBP 190 million (about EUR 217 million) cornerstone investment from Tokyo Gas, will invest in the development, construction, and operational stage offshore wind farms, as well as companies creating new offshore wind, with a focus on Europe, said Octopus Energy.
It’s almost as if Octopus Energy are planning to do for offshore wind power, what Gore Street and Gresham House Energy Storage Funds have done for battery storage.
It strikes me that a detailed purpose-built financial model, as I have built several times could give a lot of insight into the wind farms and their financing.
There is also a lot of technology coming on stream, that will help this sort of wind fund.
- In-farm energy storage will happen and this will be the obvious place to use energy storage to smooth out the power from offshore wind farms.
- Floating wind farms are becoming mature technology and appear to offering higher capacity factors.
- Floating wind farms may offer lower maintenance costs.
- Multi-Purpose Interconnectors are starting to be installed and will allow power to be sent to more than one destination in different countries.
- Wind farms are increasingly being linked to battery storage to smooth out the power from offshore wind farms.
- Electrolysers are being built offshore.
- Data analysis is playing its part in improving operational efficiency.
Now could be the time to take the plunge and build that offshore wind farm.
UK And Germany Boost Offshore Renewables Ties
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
A new partnership between the UK and German governments has been agreed on 3 November to help secure safe, affordable, and clean energy for consumers in both nations for the long-term and bolster energy security. Both countries commit to strengthening cooperation in renewables, notably offshore wind and electricity interconnection.
These two paragraphs introduce the deal.
Under the new partnership signed in London by Energy Security Secretary Claire Coutinho and Germany’s Vice Chancellor, Robert Habeck, the UK and Germany have reaffirmed their shared ambition and commitment to net zero and progressing the energy transition.
Europe’s two largest economies have also doubled down on commitments made under the Paris Agreement to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
i think this could be a worthwhile follow-up to the relationship, that Boris Johnson and Olaf Scholz seemed to encourage after their high profile meeting in April 2022.
This press release from Downing Street is entitled PM meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz: 8 April 2022 and this is the first two paragraphs.
The Prime Minister welcomed German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to Downing Street this afternoon to discuss the West’s response to Putin’s barbaric invasion of Ukraine.
The two leaders shared their disgust at the Russian regime’s onslaught and condemned Putin’s recent attacks.
I wrote Armoured Vehicles For Ukraine based on some of the things said in the press conference after what seemed to be a very wide discussion.
But it was these paragraphs in the press release that caught my eye.
They also agreed on the need to maximise the potential of renewable energy in the North Sea and collaborate on climate ambitions and green energy.
The Prime Minister said he wanted to further deepen the UK’s relationship with Germany, and intensify its cooperation across defence and security, innovation and science.
After Boris and Olaf’s meeting at Downing Street, I have been able to write these posts about the Anglo-German energy relationship and also make some other observations.
- Mona, Morgan And Morven
- UK-German Energy Link Reaches Financial Close
- RWE, Siemens and other German companies seem to be building a strong presence in the UK.
- Rolls-Royce are doing the same in Germany.
Claire Coutinho and Robert Habeck seem to be wanting to continue the co-operation, judging by this paragraph from the article on offshoreWIND,biz.
The energy and climate partnership sees both countries commit to enhancing cooperation in renewables, particularly in offshore wind and electricity interconnection, including offshore hybrid interconnection.
The most significant part of this paragraph is the mention of offshore hybrid interconnection.
If you want more details on their meeting, this document is the official UK Government declaration.
I have my thoughts.
What Is Meant By Offshore Hybrid Interconnection?
Type “Offshore Hybrid Interconnection” into Google and the first page is this page from National Grid, that is entitled Offshore Hybrid Assets, that has this sub-heading.
How the North Sea has the potential to become Europe’s green energy ‘powerhouse’
This is the introductory paragraph.
Now more than ever we need more renewable energy to make energy cleaner, more affordable, and more secure. The North Sea offers an incredible opportunity for the UK and our European neighbours to deliver huge increases in offshore wind. But delivering new offshore wind will require more infrastructure, which will have an impact on communities.
Hybrid is all-purpose comfort word like cashmere, platinum or puppies.
The page on the National Grid web site describes The Next Generation Interconnector with these paragraphs.
Interconnectors already provide a way to share electricity between countries safely and reliably. But what if they could do much more than that? What if interconnectors could become an offshore connection hub for green energy?
Instead of individual wind farms connecting one by one to the shore, offshore hybrid assets (OHAs) will allow clusters of offshore wind farms to connect all in one go, plugging into the energy systems of neighbouring countries.
And then there is this section entitled Tomorrow’s Solution: Offshore Wind And Interconnectors In Harmony, where this is said.
Today, offshore wind and interconnectors operate alongside each other, connecting to the shore individually. In the future, offshore hybrid assets could enable offshore wind and interconnection to work together as a combined asset.
We now call this type of infrastructure an offshore hybrid asset (OHA), but we used to refer to it as a multi-purpose interconnector (MPI). We changed it because we work so closely together with Europe, it made sense to use the same terminology.
The page on the National Grid web site also has an interactive graphic, which shows the benefit of the approach.
LionLink
National Grid are already developing LionLink, with Dutch grid operator; TenneT, which will be a multi-purpose interconnector linking the UK and the Netherlands.
LionLink is described on this page from National Grid, where this is the sub-heading.
We’re developing a first-of-its-kind electricity link to connect offshore wind between the UK and the Netherlands.
This is the introductory paragraph.
Designed together with our Dutch partners TenneT, LionLink (formerly known as EuroLink) is an electricity link that can supply around 1.8 gigawatts of clean electricity, enough to power approximately 1.8 million British homes. By connecting Dutch offshore wind to Dutch and British markets via subsea electricity cables called interconnectors, LionLink will strengthen our national energy security and support the UK’s climate and energy goals.
Will we be planning a similar electric handshake with the Germans?
How Much Offshore Wind Power Are We Talking About?
This is answered by the last two paragraphs of the article on offshoreWIND.biz.
Around 75 per cent of installed offshore wind capacity in the North Sea is in German and British waters. This is helping to drive the UK’s ambition for up to 50 GW of offshore wind, including up to 5 GW of floating wind, by 2030, the governments said.
Germany is aiming at installing 30 GW by 2030.
That is an Anglo-German starter for eighty GW.
Electrolysers In The Middle If The North Sea
Why Not?
This is a clip from National Grid’s graphic on the page that introduces Offshore Hybrid Assets,
It shows an offshore hydrogen electrolyser.
- You could have an offshore hybrid asset that went between say Bacton in Norfolk and Hamburg via these assets.
- One or more wind farms in UK territorial waters.
- A mammoth offshore electrolyser, with hydrogen storage, possibly in a depleted gas field.
- One or more wind farms in German territorial waters.
Electricity will be able to go three ways; to the UK, to Germany or to the electrolyser.
The Involvement Of German Energy Companies In UK Territorial Waters
Wikipedia lists offshore fifteen wind farms, that have German owners in UK territorial waters, that total 12,960 MW.
This compares with.
- Equinor – 6 wind farms totalling 6466 MW.
- Ørsted – 15 wind farms totalling 9683 MW.
- Scottish Power – 2 wind farms totalling 5,000 MW.
- SSE Renewables – 15 wind farms totalling 15,591 MW.
- Vattenfall – 6 wind farms totalling 4384 MW.
As there is a number of partnerships, these figures only show the relative sizes of the investment by individual companies.
But at nearly 13 GW, the amount of total German investment in UK territorial waters is substantial.
Is This Solely An Anglo-German Club Or Can Others Join?
Consider.
- It seems to me, that because of the LionLink, the Dutch are already involved.
- TenneT is also a large electricity distributor in Germany.
- Countries with substantial shares of the water and winds of the North Sea in addition to Germany, the Netherlands and the UK, include Belgium, Denmark and Norway.
- The UK has interconnectors with Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway and the Netherlands.
It appears that the world’s largest multi-national power generator is evolving by stealth.
North Sea Wind Power Hub
This concept seems to have developed around 2017, by Danish, Dutch and German interests.
The Wikipedia entry introduces it like this.
North Sea Wind Power Hub is a proposed energy island complex to be built in the middle of the North Sea as part of a European system for sustainable electricity. One or more “Power Link” artificial islands will be created at the northeast end of the Dogger Bank, a relatively shallow area in the North Sea, just outside the continental shelf of the United Kingdom and near the point where the borders between the territorial waters of Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark come together. Dutch, German, and Danish electrical grid operators are cooperating in this project to help develop a cluster of offshore wind parks with a capacity of several gigawatts, with interconnections to the North Sea countries. Undersea cables will make international trade in electricity possible.
Currently, the UK is developing these wind farms on their portion of the Dogger Bank.
- Doggerbank A – 1235 MW – Started producing electricity in 2023.
- Doggerbank B – 1235 MW – Planned commissioning in 2024.
- Doggerbank C – 1218 MW – Planned commissioning in 2025.
- Doggerbank D – 1320 MW – Being planned.
- Doggerbank South – 3000 MW – Being planned.
Note.
- That’s a total of 8 GW.
- A, B, C and D are being developed by a consortium of SSE Renewables and Equinor.
- South is being developed by RWE.
- This web site is for Dogger Bank D.
- This web site is for Dogger Bank South.
This map from the European Atlas of the Seas, shows the various exclusive economic zones (EEZ) in the North Sea.
Note.
- The pinkish zone to the East of the UK, is the UK’s EEZ.
- The light blue zone at the top is Norway’s EEZ.
- The greenish zone in the North-East corner of the map is Denmark’s EEZ.
- The light blue zone below Denmark’s EEZ is Germany’s EEZ.
- Then we have the EEZs for The Netherlands, Belgium and France.
The Dogger Bank is situated where the British, Dutch, German and Norwegian EEZs meet.
All five Dogger Bank wind farms are in British waters.
The Wikipedia entry for the Dogger Bank says this about its size.
The bank extends over about 17,600 square kilometres (6,800 sq mi), and is about 260 by 100 kilometres (160 by 60 mi) in extent. The water depth ranges from 15 to 36 metres (50 to 120 ft), about 20 metres (65 ft) shallower than the surrounding sea.
This probably makes it easy to accommodate a large fixed-foundation wind farm.
Overlaying the map in the Wikipedia entry, with the EEZ map, I’m fairly sure that the northeast end of the Dogger Bank is close to where the EEZs meet.
Progress On The North Sea Wind Power Hub
The North Sea Wind Power Hub has a web site, but it seems to be more about thinking than doing.
It seems to have been hijacked by that august body; The Institute of Meetings Engineers.
This page on the web site, which is entitled Explore The Future Energy Highways, has a simple interactive map.
This shows its vision for 2030.
Note.
- Yellow is electricity links to be built before 2030.
- Blue is hydrogen links to be built before 2030.
- Feint lines indicate the EEZ boundaries.
There are two problems with this layout.
- It doesn’t connect to the Dogger Bank area, where the original plan as detailed in Wikipedia talked about “Power Link” artificial islands.
- No hydrogen is delivered direct to Germany.
This shows its vision for 2050.
Note.
- Yellow, blue and feint lines are as before.
- White is electricity links to be built before 2050.
- There appears to be a node on the Dogger Bank in the German EEZ. This node could be connected to the “Power Link” artificial islands.
- The Southernmost connection to East Anglia could be Bacton.
- The other Norfolk connection could be where wind farms are already connected.
- The Northern connection could be Teesside, where some of the Dogger Bank wind farms connect.
- If the Northern connection to England is Teesside, then first node, which is in the British EEZ, could be one of the offshore sub-stations in the Dogger Bank wind farm complex.
This all seems a lot more feasible.
A New Offshore Hybrid Asset Between Teesside And Germany
Consider.
- A new offshore sub-station will be needed in the German EEZ to connect the “Power Link” artificial islands to the power network.
- The new offshore sub-station will eventually have three interconnectors to the German coast.
- Only the 1218 MW Dogger Bank C wind farm will be connected to the Teesside onshore substation.
- Germany has a power supply problem, after shutting down nuclear power stations and building more coal-fired power stations.
A new Offshore Hybrid Asset between Teesside and Germany could be created by building the following.
- A the new offshore sub-station in the German EEZ to connect the “Power Link” artificial islands to the power network.
- An interconnector between a sub-station of the Dogger Bank wind farm complex and the new sub-station
- A second interconnector to connect the new sub-station for the “Power Link” artificial islands to the German electricity grid.
All of the work would be done mainly in the German EEZ, with a small amount in the British EEZ.
Where Does Dogger Bank South Fit In?
Consider.
- Dogger Bank South is planned to be a 3 GW wind farm.
- It will need a 3 GW connection to the onshore electricity grid.
- Creyke Beck substation is the proposed location for the onshore connection.
- It is owned by German electricity company; RWE.
Could it be that some of the electricity produced by Dogger Bank South is going to be sent to Germany or to another node to produce hydrogen?
It certainly illustrates the value of an Offshore Hybrid Asset.
Irish ESB Joins Northland Power On Two Scottish Offshore Wind Projects
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
ESB will acquire a 24.5 per cent interest in Northland Power’s ScotWind projects, the fixed-bottom offshore wind farm Spiorad na Mara and the floating wind project Havbredey. Northland will retain 75.5 per cent in each project and continue to lead their development, construction, and operation
This is the first paragraph.
The companies have signed definitive agreements on ESB’s purchase of project stakes, with all commitments made prior to the agreements to remain in place.
Last month, I wrote ESB Invests In Floating Offshore Wind Mooring Tech. so are they in acquisitive mode?
This map from Cross Estate Scotland shows all the ScotWind contracts.
ESB now lrasr the following stakes in ScotWind.
Their details are as follows.
- 14 – Havbredey – Floating – 1500 MW – 25 %
- 16 – Spiorad na Mara – Fixed – 840 MW – 25 %
- 20 – Unnamed – Floating – 500 MW – 100 %
These figures mean they lease about a GW.
I have my thoughts.
Will There Be A Multi-Purpose Interconnector between Ireland And Scotland?
Nothing has been mentioned yet, but could new wind farms om the future to the West of the Hebrides be connected to both the North of Scotland and the North of Ireland by a multi-purpose interconnector?
Ireland To Develop National Industrial Strategy For Offshore Wind
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
Ireland’s Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, has announced plans to develop a National Industrial Strategy for Offshore Wind which will set out how Ireland can maximise the economic opportunity arising from the production of offshore wind energy
Ireland’s current objectives for offshore wind are.
- To deliver 5 GW of offshore wind by 2030.
- A further 2 GW of floating wind to be in development by 2030.
- The target for offshore wind could rise to at least 37 GW by 2050.
- There is a target to provide 80 per cent of the country’s electricity to be from renewable sources by 2030.
The government appears to recognise collaborative approach between state and industry is needed.
Nothing is said about co-operation with Northern Ireland or the UK.
This is despite.
- UK and Irish companies like ESB, Flotation Energy, Simply Blue Group and SSE have projects in both countries.
- Irish company; ESB is developing the Malin Sea Wind wind farm in Scottish waters and landing the electricity near Derry City.
- Scottish company; SSE is building biomass power stations in Ireland.
- Some promising waters for wind power are shared between the two countries.
- There are three interconnectors between the two main islands.
I would expect that there could be some multi-purpose interconnectors across the Irish and Celtic Seas.
These would connect windfarms between the islands to both the UK and Ireland. National Grid and TenneT are building the LionLink between England and The Netherlands, which I wrote about in World’s Largest-Of-Its-Kind Power Line To Deliver Clean Power To 1.8m UK Homes And Boost Energy Security.
I very much feel, that there will be a lot of co-operation between the UK and Irish governments as if they work together, the development of Ireland’s offshore wind and that of the West Coast of the UK could be more efficient.
World’s Largest-Of-Its-Kind Power Line To Deliver Clean Power To 1.8m UK Homes And Boost Energy Security
The title of this post, is the same as that as this press release from the UK Government.
These are the three bullet points of the press release.
- LionLink power line between UK and Netherlands will deliver enough electricity to power more homes than Manchester and Birmingham combined.
- Agreement made as Grant Shapps leads delegation of leading businesses to key North Sea Summit.
- Part of renewed Government drive to work with business to help grow the economy.
These three paragraphs outline the project.
The world’s largest multi-use electricity power line will be built under the North Sea, boosting UK energy supplies with enough to power 1.8 million homes – more than Birmingham and Manchester combined.
The new LionLink will connect the UK and the Netherlands with offshore wind farms, providing clean affordable and secure energy to Britain which will help cut household bills and drive Putin’s Russia further out of the energy market.
The cross-border electricity line will be only the second of its kind in the world, with the first having been built by Germany and Denmark. However, it will be able to carry more than four times the amount of electricity as its predecessor – making it the largest of its kind in terms of capacity anywhere in the world.
Note.
- I suspect the LionLink will go via the Dogger Bank, where Danish, Dutch, German and UK territorial waters meet an we are already building 8 GW of fixed foundation offshore wind. The other countries are also active in the area.
- The press release doesn’t mention, where the LionLink will make landfall in the UK.
- Much of the connection will probably use the cables being laid for the Dogger Bank wind farms.
- There is also no mention of the North Sea Wind Power Hub, which could be an artificial island on the Dogger Bank.
There is also a press release on the National Grid web site, which is entitled National Grid And TenneT Collaborate On Proposed First-Of-A-Kind Anglo-Dutch Electricity Link, which gives more details.
- The capacity is stated to be 2 GW.
- Like the current BritNed interconnector, the project will be a cooperation between National Grid And TenneT.
- TenneT is a limited liability company owned by the Dutch government, that is a transmission system operator in the Netherlands and in a large part of Germany.
There is also a diagram, showing how the LionLink will work, which includes these components.
- On the Dutch side, there is an offshore AC>DC Converter Station, which is connected to the Dutch electricity grid and one or more offshore wind farms.
- Across the border between the Dutch and UK Exclusive Economic Zones, there will be a HVDC cable.
- The HVDC cable will terminate in an onshore DC>AC Converter Station in the UK, which will be connected to the UK electricity grid.
No details of the two landfalls have been given.
More information is given in this article on offshoreWIND.biz, which is entitled UK And Netherlands Unveil Multi-Purpose Interconnector Plans.
- This shows a map of the North Sea with an interconnector running in a straight line between possibly Rotterdam and Bacton in Norfolk.
- A wind farm is shown connected to this interconnector.
This paragraph describes the windfarm and the interconnector.
LionLink, a multi-purpose interconnector that was announced today at the North Sea summit, could connect a Dutch offshore wind farm with a capacity of 2 GW to both countries via subsea interconnectors.
If the wind farm has a capacity of 2 GW, I would assume it can supply up to 2 GW to the UK and The Netherlands.
This is a classic system, that can be optimised by the application of sound principles.
All electricity generated by the wind farm must be used, stored or converted into green hydrogen.
Electricity will be distributed as to need.
Energy storage or electrolysers could be sited at either end or even in the wind farm.
I would suspect that more wind farms could be connected to the interconnector.
The team, that write the control system for the grid will have a lot of fun!
BritNed
I have a feeling that National Grid and TenneT have taken a long hard commercial look at the electrical and financial performance of BritNed over the last year and decided, that a second connection would be to the mutual benefit of both companies, their customers and the UK and The Netherlands in general.
It would also be twice as difficult for terrorists sponsored by Putin to cut two cables.
Conclusion
This is a great leap forward for wind power in the North Sea and Europe.
The Anonymous Widower 