Gas interconnectors

Gas interconnectors connect gas transmission systems from other countries to the National Transmission System (NTS) in England, Scotland and Wales.

There are currently three gas interconnectors which connect to the NTS. These are:

  • IUK interconnector to Belgium
  • Balgzand to Bacton Line (BBL) to the Netherlands
  • Moffat to the Republic of Ireland interconnector 

We regulate the activities of the gas interconnector owners and operators through standard gas interconnector licence conditions to ensure that gas is transported competitively to the NTS and that secure energy supplies are maintained.

You can see relevant decisions and other Gas Interconnector Licence documents in the following dedicated sections:

Electricity interconnectors

Great Britain’s electricity market currently has 6GW of electricity interconnector capacity:

  • 3GW to France (IFA and IFA2)
  • 1GW to the Netherlands (BritNed)
  • 1GW to Belgium (Nemo Link)
  • 500MW to Northern Ireland (Moyle)
  • 500MW to the Republic of Ireland (East West). 

Under the current regulatory framework, there are two general routes for interconnector investment:

  1. A regulated route under our 'cap and floor' regime. This allows developers to identify, propose and build interconnectors, subject to Ofgem approval.

A cap and floor mechanism regulates how much money a developer can earn once in operation, providing developers with a minimum return (floor) and a limit on the potential upside (cap) for a 25-year period.

  1. As an alternative to the cap and floor model, developers can seek exemptions from regulatory requirements. Under this route developers would face the full upside and downside of the investment and would usually apply for an exemption from certain regulatory requirements to better enable the business case of their investment.

Interconnectors make money in the wholesale market from congestion revenues. Congestion revenues are dependent on the existence of price differences between markets at either end of the interconnector.

All interconnection capacity is allocated to the market via market-based methods, i.e. auctions, and the trading arrangements on electricity interconnectors are governed by Access Rules and Charging Methodologies as noted in each interconnector’s licence.

With the agreement of a UK-EU Trade and Cooperation agreement new trading arrangements are currently being developed and are expected to be in place for April 2022. 

You can see relevant decisions and other Electricity Interconnector Licence documents in the following dedicated sections:

Existing and future interconnector projects

Below is a list of existing and future electricity interconnectors with GB regulatory approval. This doesn’t include a pipeline of planned interconnectors that are under development but that we have not yet assessed.

As with other major infrastructure projects, future interconnectors face a range of challenges that can impact on timing of delivery. The estimated delivery dates shown below reflects our understanding in June 2021 of developers’ plans.

Project name

Developers

 Licensee

Connecting country

Capacity

Cap and floor regime?

Exemption?

Delivery date / estimated delivery date

IFA

National Grid Interconnector Holdings (NGIH) and RTE

National Grid Interconnectors Limited

France

2000MW

No

No

1986

Moyle

Mutual Energy

Moyle Interconnector Limited

Ireland

500MW

No

No

2002

BritNed

NGIH and TenneT

BritNed Development Limited

Netherlands

1000MW

No

Yes (Second Package)

2011

EWIC

EirGrid

EirGrid Interconnector Designated Activity Company

Ireland

500MW

No

No

2012

Nemo Link

NGIH and Elia

Nemo Link Limited 

Belgium

1000MW

Yes

No

2019

IFA2

NGIH and RTE

National Grid IFA 2 Limited

France

1000MW

Yes

No

2021

NSL

NGIH and Statnett

National Grid North Sea Link Limited

Norway

1400MW

Yes

No

2021

ElecLink

Getlink

ElecLink Limited

France

1000MW

No

Yes

2022

Viking Link

NGIH and Energinet

National Grid Viking Limited 

Denmark

1400MW

Yes

No

2023

Greenlink

Element Power & Partners Group

Greenlink Interconnector Limited

Ireland

500MW

Yes

No

2023

GridLink

iCON Infrastructure Partners III, L.P.

GridLink Interconnector Limited

France

1400MW

Yes

No

2027

NeuConnect

Meridiam, Allianz and Kansai Electric Power

NeuConnect Britain Ltd

Germany

1400MW

Yes

No

2028

FAB Link

Transmission Investment and RTE

FAB Link Limited

France

1400MW

Yes

No

2030

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