Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) framework is speeding up major interconnection projects that could increase grid capacity and deliver estimated savings of £1.5 billion ($1.9 billion). This includes the planned 500-kilometer submarine and underground cable between Scotland and Yorkshire, which will help unlock the potential of offshore wind. ASTI speeds up the funding process by up to two years, meaning electricity generated by offshore wind can be delivered to consumers more quickly.

EGL2 will build a 2 GW high-voltage electricity highway between Peterhead in Aberdeenshire and Drax in North Yorkshire. Most of the cable (around 436 km) will be under the North Sea, with the remaining 70 km on land. Two converter stations, one at each end of the cable, will feed the electricity carried by the cable into the grid and from there to consumers.

EGL2 is being delivered as a joint venture between National Grid and SSEN Transmission and will comprise the longest high voltage direct current submarine cable in the UK. It is the largest electricity transmission project ever undertaken in the UK. With an expected total investment of around £4.3 billion, it is the largest single investment in electricity transmission infrastructure in the UK and one of the most significant strategic investments in the country’s energy infrastructure in recent years.

Contracts have now been awarded to implement the project, including with the Prysmian Group for the supply of around 1,000 km of cable and with Hitachi Energy and BAM for the supply of converter stations at both ends of the submarine cable.

Work on the project is scheduled to begin this year and be completed by 2029.