More power to electricity project as EU cash granted

Funding: Scheme eligible for £8.4m

A £2billion scheme to develop an “electricity superhighway” l i nking the north-east and Norway is to receive a cash boost from the EU.

A consortium of Scandinavian energy firms behind the NorthConnect project learned this week it is eligible f or more t han £8.45million development funding.

The scheme, which has been approved by Aberdeenshire Council, will see a substation built at Boddam, near Peterhead, and is expected to create up to 200 jobs.

A three-year programme to construct the 1,400-gigawatt interconnector to transfer power from renewable-energy projects between Scotland andNorway’s west coast is due to start in 2019.

The funding was approved by the EU’s Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (Inea) under its Connecting Europe Facility programme.

Yesterday, NorthConnect deputy project manager Richard Blanchfield said: “The decision demon- strates that the European Union considers theNorthConnect project important to achieving the strategic goals of increasing security of energy supply, and contributing to sustainable development by integrating renewable-energy sources across the EU.”

Mr Blanchfield said the consortium did not believe Brexit would affect the availability of the funding.

He added: “The funding is for the project work up to a financial investment decision which is within the period when the UK continues to be a member state, therefore we cannot see that Brexit is going to have any impact.

“The economic fundamentals for electricity in- terconnection between UK and Norway remains strong. Ministers of the two countries have also stated this and the UK minister has stated that continuing energy co-operation and trading with Europe is also in the interests of all countries of the continent.”

Tommy Lovstad, NorthConnect’s chief executive and project manager, said the funding decision was a “huge milestone” for the project. Mr Lovstad added: “Being selected to receive funding from the EU is a very positive boost to the project’s momentum, and will give the project owners important support in the challenging development environment.”

The announcement was welcomed by environmental group WWF Scotland.

The organisation’s director, Lang Banks, said: “If Scotlandandthe rest of Europe are to move to a 100% renewable future, then greater use of interconnectors is an essential part of that future.

“Greater interconnection brings the double benefits of ensuring security of supply and removing the need to build lots of expensive new nuclear or fossil fuel power stations.”

NorthConnect is jointly owned by Swedish utility Vattenfall and three Norwegian energy companies, E-CO Energi, Agder Energi and Lyse.

SENSITIVE: A visualisation of the substation blending with the landscape at Boddam, near Peterhead