Pembrokeshire’s Celtic allegiance with Ireland looks set to be strengthened even further as construction work gets underway on the Greenlink interconnector cable, which will links the existing electricity grids in Ireland with those in the UK.
Greenlink consists of two converter stations - one located close to the Great Island substation in County Wexford and the other close to the Pembroke substation between Freshwater West and Angle.
The Greenlink cable will enable both stations to be connected by two high voltage direct current cables leading under the Irish Sea. A converter station will convert electricity from Alternating Current (AC) to Direct Current (DC) and vice versa.
DC electricity is typically used for the transmission of electricity over long distances because it has lower losses, negligible heating effects and is therefore suitable to be buried underground.
Accordingly, there will be no overhead lines between the two converter stations. Onshore, the cables will be buried underground and offshore the cables will be buried in the seabed or laid on the seabed with protection, if burial is not practicable.
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The power will subsequently be able to flow in either direction, depending on the supply and demand in each country and the interconnector cable will have a nominal capacity of 500MW.
The Greenlink project is being hailed as having key strategic importance, as it will provide significant additional interconnection between Ireland and Great Britain, with onward connections to continental Europe.
Its construction and development will deliver increased energy security, regional investment and value for money to consumers, and will enable the further integration of low carbon renewable energy sources.
The project required planning permission in both Wales and Ireland and technical and environmental constraints were identified and fully assessed to ensure that they were considered within the final design of the project.
Detailed surveys commenced in 2018, following the completion of desk-based assessments and consultation with statutory consultees.
Once a detailed proposal and design were completed, applications for permits and licences were made to Pembrokeshire County Council, Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority, Natural Resources Wales and Milford Haven Port Authority.
Construction is expected to take approximately two and a half years to complete.
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