Icelink is a proposed electricity

interconnector An interconnector (also known as a DC tie in the USA) is a structure which enables high-voltage DC electricity to flow between electrical grids, connecting separate AC networks, or linking synchronous grids. It may be formed of submarine power ...

between

Iceland Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

via

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. At , the 8001,200MW

high-voltage direct current A high-voltage direct current (HVDC) electric power transmission system uses direct current (DC) for electric power transmission, in contrast with the more common alternating current (AC) transmission systems. Most HVDC links use voltages betwe ...

(HVDC) link would be the longest sub-sea power interconnector in the world. The project partners for the main proposal are

National Grid plc National Grid plc is a British multinational electricity and gas utility company headquartered in London, England. Its principal activities are in the United Kingdom, where it owns and operates electricity and natural gas transmission networks ...

in the UK,

Landsvirkjun Landsvirkjun, () the National Power Company of Iceland, is Iceland's largest electricity generator. Landsvirkjun operates 21 power plants in Iceland concentrated on five main areas of operation. History Landsvirkjun was founded on 1 July 196 ...

, the state-owned generator in Iceland, and

Landsnet Landsnet (, ) is a transmission system operator of the Icelandic high-voltage power grid. It is a public company owned by the Icelandic government (93.22%) and Orkuveita Reykjavíkur (6.78%). It is a member of the European Network of Transmissi ...

, the Icelandic Transmission System Operator (TSO). An alternative proposal by Edi Truell's company Disruptive Capital Finance goes by the name "Atlantic SuperConnection", but it requires

UK government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

financing. According to

, it will take about five years to complete feasibility and other work, and if a decision is made to go ahead, construction and installation would take a further five to six years. The cost is as of 2023 expected to be €3.5 bn ($3.8 bn), for the cable and stations, not counting additional power plants.

Status

In 2017, the main proposal for the project was still at the feasibility stage, and, , no further progress had been reported. As of 2019, the "Atlantic SuperConnection" proposal had still not obtained the required financial support from the UK government. The link is highly controversial in Icelandic politics, with a fear of environmental effects associated with increasing Iceland's power supply to meet Icelink's demand, as well as concerns over increased domestic energy prices in Iceland. For the project to move forward, the Icelandic parliament needs to accept the construction, which as of 2022 is not likely.

Northern Ireland variant

At the 2019 UK General Election 2019, the

Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) is a Unionism in Ireland, unionist, Ulster loyalism, loyalist, British nationalist and national conservative political party in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1971 during the Troubles by Ian Paisley, who ...

included in their manifesto a proposal for Icelink to make landfall in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

References

External links

Overview of IceLink, on the Landsvirkjun website
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200124224840/https://www.landsvirkjun.com/researchdevelopment/submarinecabletoeurope , date=24 January 2020 Electrical interconnectors to and from Great Britain Proposed electric power transmission systems Proposed electric power infrastructure in the United Kingdom Electric power infrastructure in Iceland Proposed infrastructure

Status

Northern Ireland variant

See also

References

External links