In news that at first sounds like a belated April fool’s joke, the volcanoes of Iceland could soon be powering your home. Under Government-backed plans, thousands of miles of high-voltage cables could be placed along the ocean floor, carrying low-carbon electricity from Iceland to UK shores.
Today, Energy Minister, Charles Hendry confirmed this news. Speaking with the Guardian he explained: “We are in active discussions with the Icelandic Government and they are very keen.”
Hendry has reportedly met with the head of Iceland’s national grid to talk through the plans, and will travel to the country next month to continue discussions. If the project is given the go ahead, the undersea cables – called interconnectors – will link the UK to the Europe-wide ‘super grid’.
To date only two existing international interconnectors have been installed, linking France and the Netherlands. However, there are reportedly nine more interconnectors under construction, in planning or undergoing feasibility studies. In fact, later on this year an interconnection between the Republic of Ireland and Wales will be opened, delivering green energy from the Atlantic coast of Ireland to British homes.
Government’s latest plans come as a result of its carbon reduction committment, which aims to wean the UK off carbon heavy energy sources by 2050. “We will be dependent on imported energy,” Hendry stated. The cables “are an absolutely critical part of energy security and for low carbon energy,” he concluded.
