France-Spain subsea electricity interconnection gets under way
The French-Spanish TSO jv Inelfe has awarded the main contracts for the Biscay Gulf electricity interconnection between the two countries.
Among the awards NKT and Prysmian have been contracted to supply the two high voltage direct current (HVDC) 400kV cable systems and Hitachi Energy in a consortium with the French construction company Vinci has been contracted to provide the four HVDC DC-AC converter stations.
The Biscay Gulf interconnector, labelled as a ‘project of common interest’ at the European level, is set to run over 400km between Cubnezais near Bordeaux in southwest France to Gatika near Bilbao in northern Spain.
It will consist of two HVDC links, each with two cables, and with the converter stations at each end of both systems, which will supply 2,000MW of electricity.
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Apart from a short section of the link cable returning to land near the town of Bayona close to the Spanish border to avoid the Capbreton submarine canyon, and the two underground land connections, the link will be under water on the seabed.
“Cross border, and often subsea, interconnections are vital to Europe’s increasingly interconnected grid,” says Niklas Persson, Managing Director at Hitachi Energy’s Grid Integration business.
“Through our pioneering HVDC technology, we enable Inelfe to accelerate the two countries’ sustainability goals, improving the safety, stability and quality of electricity supply between France and Spain and the rest of Europe.”
Inelfe (Interconexión Eléctrica Francia-España) is a 50/50 joint venture between the Spanish and French TSOs, respectively Red Eléctrica and RTE, with responsibility for building and activating the electricity interconnections between France and Spain.
Previously the company had built the Baixas-Santa Llogaia electricity interconnection across the Pyrenees between the two countries, which with existing interconnection increased the capacity up to 2,800MW.
With the new Biscay Gulf interconnector, due to come online in 2028, the interconnection capacity will approach 5,000MW.
