The UK National Grid is about to begin a marine survey of a damaged section of an interconnector between France and the UK that has been operating since 1986.
The survey of the IFA 2000 submarine cable is scheduled to begin today, November 5, approximately 3 nautical miles offshore Folkestone, Kent, and will continue until November 9 or 10, subject to weather and operational conditions.
The Panama-flagged survey vessel CERES III will be used for the work.
The 2 GW IFA 2000 high voltage direct current (HVDC) electrical interconnector is approximately 70 kilometers long, with 45 kilometers being subsea.
Three electricity interconnectors with a total capacity of 4 GW are in service between France and the UK, including IFA 2000, commissioned in 1986, the 1 GW IFA2 , commissioned in January 2021, and the 1 GW ElecLink, commissioned in May 2022.
It was reported in May 2024 that the French Energy Regulatory Commission is investigating the opportunity for a new electricity interconnection between the two countries.