The European Investment Bank (EIB) will provide a EUR 350 million loan to TenneT to finance ‘NordLink’, the first interconnection between Germany and Norway across the North Sea.
The bipolar High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) link will have a capacity of 1,400 MW and a total route length of 624 km.
Ambroise Fayolle , EIB vice president, responsible for Germany, said: “ Security of electricity supply and effective use of renewable energy will be improved significantly. Initially, NordLink will bring surplus hydro generation form Norway to Germany. In the medium term, it will help ease constraints and allow the evacuation of surplus renewable generation from Germany to Scandinavia. For us, the EU Bank, forward-looking investments in modern energy infrastructure are key to reach our ambitious climate goals.”
Otto Jager , CFO TenneT added: “The support of the EIB for this project shows the importance of investments like NordLink, integrating European electricity markets. With this subsea interconnector we can exchange energy between two complementary energy systems. There’s the increasing amount of wind and solar power produced in Germany on the one hand and the production of energy from hydroelectric power in Norway on the other. NordLink is a connection of European pertinence that benefits all countries, especially North-west Europe.”
The NordLink project will be realized by the Norwegian TSO Statnett and DC Nordseekabel GmbH & Co. KG, each with 50% ownership.
With its capacity of 1,400 megawatts, NordLink can provide renewable energy for more than 3.6 million German households and will be able to transport for example wind energy generated by approximately 466 wind turbines of 3 megawatts.