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The Greenlink interconnector, a 504 MW high-voltage direct current (HVDC) link connecting the electricity grids of Ireland and Great Britain, has officially commenced commercial operations. The announcement was made on January 29 by James O’Reilly, CEO of Greenlink Interconnector Limited.
This milestone follows more than three years of construction. Core consents for the project were secured in 2021, with onshore construction beginning in January 2022.
The interconnector establishes a new grid connection between EirGrid’s Great Island substation in County Wexford, Ireland, and the National Grid’s Pembroke substation in Pembrokeshire, Wales, allowing power to flow in both directions based on supply and demand.
Greenlink is recognized as the first privately financed interconnector in Europe to be backed under the Cap & Floor regulatory regimes in the UK and Ireland. The project’s engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract was awarded to a consortium comprising Siemens Energy and Sumitomo Electric.
