GE Vernova and Mytilineos bag £1bn contract for UK’s Eastern Green Link

Mytilineos Energy & Metals and GE Vernova’s Grid Solutions business have been awarded a £1 billion contract by National Grid Electricity Transmission and SP Transmission for the Eastern Green Link 1 project.

The Eastern Green Link 1 (EGL1) project will see the creation of a 525kV, 2GW HVDC subsea transmission cable from Torness in East Lothian, Scotland, to Hawthorn Pit in County Durham, England.

GE Vernova and Mytilineos will supply and construct the two HVDC converter stations for each end of the link.

Mytilineos will be responsible for engineering, procurement and construction of civil works, balance of plant and installation of all equipment.

GE Vernova will provide HVDC valves and transformers as well as its eLumina™ control system, which uses a digital measurement system fully based on International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61850.

The contract was awarded alongside a £750 million contract to Prysmian Group for the delivery of the UK’s first HVDC electricity transmission cable, which will transmit power to more than two million homes across the UK.

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According to National Grid, the project is one of the largest overhauls in decades and is the first of six planned subsea links between Scotland and England.

EGL1’s project director Peter Roper commented on the milestone: “EGL1 is a transformative project for the UK, enhancing security of supply and helping to connect and transport green power for all customers.

These contract announcements are big wins for the supply chain and another important milestone as we build the new network infrastructure to help the UK meet its net zero and energy security ambitions. We look forward to working in collaboration with Prysmian, GE Vernova and MYTILINEOS as the project continues to progress.”

The EGL1 project is currently nearing the end of the development phase, with construction work planned to commence in 2024, and with the new connection anticipated to be operational in 2029.

Originally published on Power Engineering International.