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Guernsey Electricity has signed a contract for the installation of another undersea electricity cable between Jersey and France.
The cable, known as Normandie 1 (or N1), is a direct replacement for EDF1 which came to the end of its useful life in 2012 after more than 25 years in service. The cable will be an upgrade on EDF1, with 100MW capacity instead of 55MW.
The project will cost in the region of £40m which will be shared between Guernsey Electricity and Jersey Electricity as part of the joint initiative the Channel Islands Electricity Grid (CIEG). The project is expected to be completed and in service by 2017.
The CIEG has recently completed the installation of Normandie 3, a new 100MW cable to France and repairs to GJ1, the original interconnector between Guernsey and Jersey.
Guernsey Electricity investment planning and design lead Stuart Blondel said: “This joint project is hugely important to our energy security and to the affordability of electricity in Guernsey. Investment in cables is essential to maintaining a reliable supply at a price our customers can afford.
“The laying of a cable to replace EDF1 will increase the amount of electricity that Guernsey can import; a less expensive, lower carbon and more secure source of energy than generating electricity on island.”
The added capacity is expected to raise Guernsey’s import levels to more than 95%, with the remaining generated using the utility’s diesel generators which will also serve as a back-up to the cable network.
“It is also important to remember that the cable gives us access to renewables. 30% of the power that we import comes from hydro-electric sources,” said Mr Blondel.
The contract to manufacture the cable has been awarded to Prysmian, who also manufactured the N3 cable, and it will be installed by VMBS, who carried out the preventative repair work on GJ1 earlier this year.
