A Major Boost for Green Energy Company Supplies

Date: 15/08/24

One of the biggest issues facing green energy company plans is how to get their clean, renewable energy from offshore wind farms and remote solar power arrays to the homes of the people who need it. The National Grid is designed for input from a small number of huge power stations, rather than multiple smaller suppliers such as a green energy company.

However, the good news is that this is all about to change. This week, the Government gave its approval for the first of a series of subsea cables along the east coast of the UK, which will help to bring renewable energy from Scotland’s many offshore windfarms to two million homes in England.

EGL2 approved

The first of these new ‘energy superhighways’ is called EGL2, and it is being jointly developed by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks Transmission (SSENT) and National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET). Work has already begun on the converter stations and the connection is expected to be completed in 2028, with the first power flowing the following year.

ELG2 will comprise a pair of high voltage, direct current cables stretching 436km along the seabed and 69km across the land. It will run from Peterhead in Aberdeenshire, leaving the Scottish coast at Sandford Bay and running under the sea until it re-joins the coast at Wilsthorpe and continues overland to Drax in North Yorkshire.

The project is expected to cost around £4.3billion and is the first of four new subsea cables that will link Scotland and England, eventually powering 7.5million homes. While their primary function is to transfer wind power from Scotland to England, they are two-way cables, allowing Scotland to import power on days where there is insufficient wind for its power needs.

Why do we need ELG2?

The new cables are an essential element of the UK’s plans for both net zero emissions and energy security. By making it easier to move power from a green energy company in the north to homes in the south, the country can reduce its reliance on fossil fuels and emit less greenhouse gasses. Ultimately, the Government wants every UK home to be powered by offshore wind, and has set a target of 50GW capacity by the early 2030s.

At the same time as increasing our renewable energy capacity, this reduced reliance on fossil fuels makes the UK more energy secure. By being less exposed to energy price fluctuations, we can protect supplies and avoid the unpredictable fuel bill rises that we saw following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Make your own green energy with Think Hire

Here at Think Hire, we’re delighted to see such progress being made towards a cleaner, greener future. Upgrading the grid is a vital piece of the net zero jigsaw. However, it’s worth remembering that as a green energy company, we can help you make your own renewable energy right there on site, with our state of the art, portable solar powered generators.

The Solartainer can be used as a direct replacement for a diesel generator up to 100kVA, and it can be hired or purchased outright depending on your project and your future financial plans. There’s no need for complex cabling to connect you to the grid, because the Solartainer comes to you, with a flexible, portable design that can be set up almost anywhere, even on the most remote of sites.

We may not be able to power 7.5million homes, but the Solartainer has proved itself on thousands of construction sites, road and rail projects, and more up and down the country, establishing Think Hire as a leading green energy company.

To find out more about renewable energy on site from Think Hire, get in touch with our team today.

View all Think Hire news