The multibillion-euro Biscay Gulf interconnector, set to increase electricity exchange capacity between Spain and France from 2.8 GW to 5 GW, is 70% complete, with onshore cable laying currently underway.
Spanish transmission system operator (TSO) Red Eléctrica has begun underground cable laying for the electrical interconnection project that will, across the Bay of Biscay, connect Gatika in Spain and France's Cubnezais.
The underground HVDC cables will run for 13 kilometers, from the Gatika converter station to the coast at Lemoiz, where they will connect to the submarine cables.
Furthermore, Red Eléctrica recently completed the second phase of subsea cable laying, a 50-kilometer stretch, using Prysmian's cable-laying vessel (CLV) Monna Lisa. On the Biscayan coast, the first phase was completed in August with NKT's CLV Victoria, which was responsible for installing the first 65 kilometers of the route.
With this, all the submarine cables have been installed in the Biscay section of the submarine interconnection.
Work will continue on the sections off the coast of Gipuzkoa between November and February, with all sections expected to be laid in French waters until the summer.
The Spanish TSO also reported that the construction of the future Gatika converter station is progressing well, with civil engineering work completed and the electromechanical assembly currently underway.
The Biscay Gulf interconnector is now 70% complete. Developed by Red Eléctrica and its French counterpart RTE, through the joint venture Inelfe, the project is considered a Project of Common Interest by the European Union and is co-financed through CINEA - the European Union's Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency, in addition to support from the European Investment Bank (EIB).