Britain’s electricity upgrade just landed a major boost as Sumitomo Electric wins the contract to build and install the 140 km Sea Link HVDC cable between Kent and Suffolk.
The project is central to the Great Grid Upgrade, the national push to move more clean power around the country faster and cut constraint costs that hit bills.
Sea Link will be built at Sumitomo Electric’s new submarine cable factory at the Port of Nigg in Scotland, giving the UK a rare dose of industrial strategy in action as manufacturing shifts onshore and supply chains anchor locally.
The plant will create more than 200 direct jobs once fully operational and many more across the wider supply chain.
Construction on Sea Link starts in 2027, with Siemens Energy and marine contractor VanOord working alongside Sumitomo Electric on installation.
Masaki Shirayama, Managing Director of Sumitomo Electric, said: “The Sea Link Project announcement represents a major step towards investment in the local supply chain in the UK and we are proud to have its new cable manufacturing facility which plays a pivotal role in contributing to the UK’s ambitious Net Zero plans as part of The Great Grid Upgrade.”
National Grid says this is exactly what the upgrade was designed to spark.
Carl Trowell, President of Strategic Infrastructure, said: “The Great Grid Upgrade is more than an energy programme; it is one of the UK’s biggest engines of economic growth.
“By investing in skills securing our supply chain and working with world-class partners like Sumitomo Electric we are supporting tens of thousands of high-quality jobs and manufacturing capability the UK needs for the long term.”
Great grid upgrade gets sealink boost appeared first on Energy Live News.