As the world grapples with climate change and weather imbalances, the UK and Denmark could transport enough electricity to power up to 2.5 million UK homes and save households millions of pounds on energy costs. We have started a joint venture with hidden potential.
advertisementThe opening of the Viking Link cable route from the UK to Denmark is an important milestone in European connectivity. Both countries will benefit from this initiative, as it is promised to deliver 1.4 GW of electricity to 2.5 million homes in the UK.
The Viking Link submarine cable is the world’s largest underwater cable with high commission capacity, with the potential to transport enough electricity to power up to 2.5 million homes in the UK, and in its first 10 years of operation Helping the UK save £500m.
How Viking Link works
This cable route stretches from the east coast of Lincolnshire in the UK to the west coast of Jutland in Denmark. Construction of Viking Link began in 2019 through a project that embodies the design sensibilities of Siemens Energy, as the electrical assets on both sides were designed and installed by Siemens.
Interconnectors are fully functional during certain phases.
Initially it will operate with a capacity of 800MW, but over time its capacity will increase to 1.4GW. Transmission system operators in both countries plan to upgrade their systems to full operation by the end of the year. Once completed, this project will revolutionize the energy sector in both states.
By 2030, the interconnector is expected to avoid around 100 million tonnes of carbon emissions in the UK alone, making a constructive contribution to supporting the climate crisis. Also, almost 90% of imported energy will come from zero-carbon energy sources.
Benefits for the UK
This project will benefit the UK on a number of levels. This will reduce the risk of electricity shortages, ensure energy security, and allow the UK to import clean energy from Denmark, which has large amounts of renewable energy.
To meet climate change goals, this project will help reduce carbon emissions. This points to innovation in the energy sector playing a key role in overcoming common challenges. Demand management, decarbonization targets and aging infrastructure mean the Viking Link subsea is proving to be of great importance to the UK. This will strengthen the resilience of the UK’s power environment and ensure cross-border cooperation.
The project will not only deliver significant benefits to UK consumers, but will also help with the threat of global climate change by ensuring cheaper, lower carbon electricity. According to reports, VikingLink is expected to reduce emissions by around 600,000 tonnes in its first year of operation. This is the equivalent of taking 280,000 cars off the road.
Benefits for Denmark
The agreement successfully provided Denmark with a market to export surplus electrical energy generated from wind power. Enabling the export of renewable energy will demonstrate Denmark’s position as a leader in sustainable energy and encourage other countries to follow suit.
This interconnector cable incorporates advanced technologies such as high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission that works with advanced control and communication systems to manage the flow of electricity over long distances. Mass impregnated cables have the ability to withstand high electrical stress and deep water pressure.
Despite existing submarine cable projects such as NordLink and North Sea Link, the Viking Link submarine cable will be one of the longest interconnectors currently installed, at approximately 765 kilometers in length. This represents a significant engineering achievement by linking two far-flung markets.
EU interconnection goals
This is an important step in the EU’s larger plan for electricity connectivity, which aims to achieve a 15% connectivity rate by 2023. This essentially means that each country must have a cable network in place that allows them to connect 15% of the electricity produced within their territory. Sent to neighboring countries. So far, 16 countries are on track for this venture.