To learn more about what cookies we use and how to change your preferences please check our cookie policy. Energy Live News Ltd We have been able to reduce the outage time of 1000MW of capacity at the IFA interconnector so that it will come back to service on 20th October, ahead of the 23rd October date we had previously published. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. The site has been evacuated and the safety of our staff, emergency teams and local residents is our highest priority. In accordance with the IFA Access Rules capacity will be rounded down (e.g. Since the commissioning of the 2,000MW DC link in the 1980s, the bulk of power flow through the link has been from France to Britain. In accordance with the IFA Access Rules (Part 3 Long Term Allocation Rules, Chapter 9 Curtailment P135) capacity will be curtailed in line with capacity available. This is in addition to the 1000MW that is unavailable until Friday 17 September due to a planned outage. Day-ahead power prices hit record high, following highs in balancing market, Electric vehicles to increase electricity demand by 25% by 2040. It forced the shutdown of one of the most important power cables, which brings electricity from France to the UK. Not registered? [12], In September 2021, a major fire at the Sellindge converter station led to the shutdown of the link. A fire occurred in the early hours of Wednesday 15th September 2021 atour UK Sellindge site resulting in the cables capacity being redu Read More. (Reuters) - Britain's National Grid on Monday said a planned outage of 1000 MW of capacity at IFA interconnector in Sellindge in Kent has been extended until Oct. 23. 10 czerwca 2022 A spokesperson for National Grid confirmed the incident, stating: "The site has been evacuated and the safety of our staff, emergency teams and local residents is our highest priority." National Grid had a projected derated margin of 4.3GW in its early winter outlook report; this looks like it may have just almost halved. National Grid said: Following a detailed assessment on the 1,000MW of capacity that is offline due to damage caused by a fire at our site in Sellindge in September, we need to carry out extensive work to safely return it to service. However, France imports energy as needed during the winter to meet demand, or when there is low availability of hydroelectric power. It added: Our investigation is ongoing and we will update the market with any changes as necessary.. Data from energy market analyst EnAppSys shows that in the year to date, overall average power prices have been more than double the average price in 2019-2020 and in the last two weeks daily average prices have been eight times the average in 2019. Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile. The current 2,000MW link is bi-directional and the countries can import or export depending upon market demands, mostly depending upon weather conditions and availability of renewable energy on the British Isles, and French surplus of nuclear generation or demand for electric heating. The IFA Interconnector that meets the UK in Sellindge can carry about 2GW between the two countries but the National Grid said a fire has forced a complete evacuation of the site. Unlike most HVDC schemes, where the two converter stations are built by the same manufacturer, the two converter stations of the 2,000MW scheme were built by different manufacturers (although both have subsequently become part of the same parent company, Alstom). The planned October outage has been dismissed. The shutdown came at a time of high prices and supply shortage in the UK electricity market, caused by low wind speeds and high prices for natural gas. The Institution of Engineering and Technology is registered as a Charity in England & Wales (no 211014) and Scotland (no SC038698). Our IFA2, BritNed and Nemo Link interconnectors are operating at full capacity. Sign up to the E&T News e-mail to get great stories like this delivered to your inbox every day. The fire-damaged power link between the UK and France, known as the IFA interconnector will not be fully restored for another two years. Please visit the BMRS website for the latest market updates via theREMIT report. Prices of electricity on the day-ahead market peaked at 2,500.01 per MWh for delivery between 7pm and 8pm on the N2EX exchange, with an average daily price of 424.61. Our IFA2 interconnector continues to operate as normal at full capacity. Sept 16 (Reuters) - Britain's National Grid said a fire at its IFA interconnector site in Sellindge in Kent, part of the connector that links the French and British power grids, was extinguished on Thursday. The IFA interconnector is currently out of service following a fire at our site in Sellindge. The impact is expected to plunge hundreds of thousands of homes into fuel poverty for the first time and has already forced a slowdown at factories to manage eye-watering energy costs. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. The IFA1 interconnector is expected to be offline until Oct. 13, Elexon data shows. No: 07209102 A key substation at Kent was left damaged by a fire in September.It forced the shutdown of one of the most important power cables, which brings electricity from France to the UK.. National Grid has four operational interconnectors two to France (IFA and IFA2), one to the Netherlands (BritNed) and one to Belgium (Nemo Link). Read More; IFA2 Go-Live. Get the latest from Electrical Review direct to your inbox Power Generation, Transmission and Distribution, September 14, day-ahead pricing reached a record high, New Welsh Government Green Skills Action Plan highlights ECA, Local authorities in the South East failing to consult on EV strategy, Megger confirms sponsorship of Powered On Live event, New European research project hopes to give new life to old EV batteries. This is in addition to another planned 1000MW outage until 25 September that has caused electricity prices to soar. The IFA1 stands for "Interconnexion France-Angleterre". The cable is also known as IFA,[1][2] and should not be confused with the new IFA-2, another interconnect with France that is three times as long but only half as powerful. The company added that will result in 1,500 of available capacity going into next winter. Britain's National Grid said on Wednesday there has been a fire at its IFA1 interconnector site in Sellindge in Kent and it has been evacuated. The operators annual winter outlook report said the UK had enough capacity to avoid blackouts affecting households and factories but tight supplies were likely to keep market prices at near record levels throughout the winter. In recent months, the soaring cost of natural gas and a warm, dry and windless start to autumn 2021 caused record prices on the market. until 13 October as a result. And what capacity will I now have? The maximum transmission power of this cable was 160megawatts (MW). One of Britains most important electricity import cables will not return to full service for another two years after a fire forced it to shut, compounding the UKs energy woes ahead of a looming winter crunch. The Sellindge converter station was built by GEC[7] and the Les Mandarins converter station was built by CGE Alstom. "The site has been evacuated and the safety of our staff, emergency teams and local residents is our . With margins tight anyway for this winter, as exposed by National Grid ESOs early winter outlook publication this year, it puts the GB market in a risky position for the winter and especially if we suffer from periods of low wind and cold temperatures. We have notified the market that 1000MW is unavailable until 13 October as a result. FILE PHOTO: Migrating starlings fly at dusk past electricity pylons silhouetted by the sunset of a clear autumn evening in the Kent countryside, in Graveney, Britain. Imports through the interconnector have generally been around the highest possible level, given the capacity of the link. Suite 115, Cuffley Place The most comprehensive solution to manage all your complex and ever-expanding tax and compliance needs. A fire occurred in the early hours of Wednesday 15th September 2021 at our UK Sellindge site resulting in the cables capacity being redu. Book your FREE ticket to the Big Zero Show 2023 now. Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology. Following the incident, it was forced to notify the wholesale electricity market that 1000MW would be unavailable until 27 March 2022 as a result. We are also in the process of commissioning North Sea Link, our latest interconnector to Norway, to provide additional capacity next month - ahead of the winter period. The IFA interconnectoris currently out of service following a fire at our site in Sellindge. Although each station includes an earth electrode, this is used only to provide a neutral reference, and only one of the two electrodes is connected at a given time so that there can be no current flow between them. Access unmatched financial data, news and content in a highly-customised workflow experience on desktop, web and mobile. We have notified the market that 1000MW. It was completed in 1986, and replaced the first cross-Channel link which was a 160MW link completed in 1961 and decommissioned in 1984. In order to keep the disturbances of the magnetic compasses of passing ships as small as possible, a bipolar cable was used. Following the incident, many analysts warned that the loss of 2GW of import to . Screen for heightened risk individual and entities globally to help uncover hidden risks in business relationships and human networks. The electricity system operator, which is also owned by National Grid, warned last week that the risk of power cuts to factories and homes this winter had increased after the cable outage combined with planned shutdowns at gas plants and the retirement of two nuclear reactors. "There has been a fire at our IFA interconnector site in Sellindge and emergency services are in attendance," the National Grid stated. A fire occurred in the early hours of Wednesday 15th September 2021 at our UK Sellindge site resulting in the cables capacity being reduced to 0MW. Day-ahead British power prices jumped almost 19% on the news, nearing record highs hit this week exacerbated by low wind supply and soaring gas prices. It forced the shutdown, Aldi pays back customers for recycled plastic bottles, Ofgem to unveil new energy price cap next week, Drax to exit gas sales on customers SME business. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. The IFA1 interconnector is expected to be offline until Oct. 13, Elexon data shows. LONDON Britains National Grid on Wednesday reported a fire at its IFA1 interconnector site in Sellindge in Kent and it has been evacuated. The IFA2 interconnector, a second link between Britain and France commissioned in 2020, is operating and not affected. The blaze at the Sellindge converter station in Kent forced a shutdown of the high-voltage cable that brings electricity from France to the UK last month as energy markets rocketed to all-time highs amid global energy supply difficulties. IFA1 is a 2,000 MW interconnector that links Great Britain and France, and while it has recently been at half capacity, it was set to return to full capacity this weekend, before tragedy struck. The IFA connector was the first cross-Channel link, completed in 1961 with an initial 160MW capacity. National Grid confirmed it will bring 500MW back to service from . Please visit the BMRS website for the latest market updates via theREMIT report. "We are completely focused on getting IFA safely returned to service as soon as possible," the grid said in an update on its website. We are completely focused on getting IFA safely returned to service as soon as possible and ensuring we are able to support security of supply. read more. Interconnexion France-Angleterre (IFA) is a joint venture between the French Transmission Operator RTE and National Grid, operating the subsea electricity link between Great Britain and France, commissioned in 1986. June 22, 2022; Posted by . Oversees and coordinates EMEA coverage of power, gas, LNG, coal and carbon markets and has 20 years' experience in journalism. The IFA interconnector has two Bipoles, each with a capacity of 1,000MW. We are on-site assessing the damage and investigating the cause of the fire. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. On September 14, day-ahead pricing reached a record high, with a peak energy price of 2,500 per MWh, which is significantly higher than the 40 per MWh average baseload price during 2019-20. Whilst repairs were undertaken there was considerable down time on the circuit resulting in a loss of trading. Customers will be compensated at Initial Price Paid. ifa interconnector fire cause. Lab leak theory: 3 years on, will we ever know where COVID came from? The cable was built by ABB. Commissioned in 2020, IFA2 is the second link to France that National Grid has developed with RTE. We have notified the market via REMIT that we expect our IFA interconnector to return to full service on 16 December 2022 - 10 months ahead of our previous estimate. Please visit the BMRS website for the latest market updates via the REMIT report. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Which countries have banned TikTok, and why? VAT No: 988 8336 42. By; June 14, 2022 ; carnival cruise cancellations 2022 . Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. Lost capacity will compound UKs energy woes while extensive work is carried out on French connection. "Our investigation is ongoing and we will update the market with any changes as necessary," a National Grid spokesperson said via email. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the worlds largest multimedia news provider, reaching billions of people worldwide every day. Wednesday's almost 19% price jump took British day-ahead electricity prices to 475.00 pounds per megawatt hour (MWh), close to a record high of 540 pounds MWh hit this week. Dear Customers, We wish to update you on the major incident that occurred at IFA yesterday. We are completely focused on getting IFA safely returned to service as soon as possible and ensuring we are able to support security of supply, the company said in a statement. Big Zero Report 2022. Initially these were air-cooled and used analogue control systems, and in 2011 and 2012 respectively, the thyristor valves of Bipole 1 and Bipole 2 were replaced by modern water-cooled thyristor valves and digital control systems supplied by Alstom. We are completely focused on getting IFA safely returned to service as soon as possible and we are in discussions with the UK ESO and our European partners to ensure we optimise upcoming planned pre-winter outages of our other interconnectors to support UK security of supply. Indeed, by 1984 the circuit was disconnected from the Main Transmission System. IFA1 is a 2,000 MW interconnector that links Great Britain and France, and while it has recently been at half capacity, it was set to return to full capacity this weekend, before tragedy struck. There has been a fire at our IFA interconnector site in Sellindge and emergency services are in attendance, a National Grid spokesperson said. We wish to update you on the major incident that occurred at IFA yesterday. The outage comes at a time when UK baseload power prices are at record highs due to soaring gas prices, high. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. This table details the curtailment required for each month, this is in accordance with REMIT, should the availability change this table would change accordingly. Energy crisis reignites demand for oil, threatening climate targets, says IEA, Sign up to the daily Business Today email or follow Guardian Business on Twitter at @BusinessDesk, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. The other 1 GW capacity of the IFA1 link is currently offline due to planned maintenance which will be extended until Sept. 25, the spokesperson said. Interconnexion France-Angleterre (IFA) is a joint venture between the French transmission operator RTE and National Grid, operating a 2 gigawatt subsea electricity link between Britain and France. A major fire impacted the GB side of the interconnector, with 12 fire engines on-site to deal with the blaze. This is combined with the fact that some generators that were mothballed over summer have yet to restart, making wholesale electricity prices surpass their highest-ever level even prior to the interconnector fire. [2] The 204-kilometre (127 mi) high voltage DC (HVDC) cable operates at +/-320kV with the capacity to transmit 1,000 MW of power. Future auctions will be adjusted where necessary. Following an initial review, we have updated the market that 1000MW is unavailable until 27 March 2022. A spokesperson for National Grids electricity system operator (ESO) said Britain would have sufficient electricity supplies on Wednesday despite the incident. Holy oil for King Charles' coronation consecrated in Jerusalem, Unrepentant Johnson to give 'partygate' evidence in UK inquiry this month, Reporting by Nina Chestney and Susanna Twidale; editing by Louise Heavens, Jason Neely and Marguerita Choy, Exclusive: Snapchat kicks few children off app in Britain, data given to regulator shows, UK public inflation expectations rise unexpectedly -Citi/YouGov, Vaughan denies racism allegation, says Yorkshire hearing 'bad look' for sport, Finland to allow gender reassignment without sterilisation, Brazil approves GMO wheat as food supply fears help convince skeptics, FDA says no indication contaminated cough syrups have entered U.S. supply chain, China's central bank says will adjust policy in a timely way as economy recovers, Canada environment minister 'deeply concerned' about Imperial Oil tailings leak, Exclusive news, data and analytics for financial market professionals. Reuters provides business, financial, national and international news to professionals via desktop terminals, the world's media organizations, industry events and directly to consumers. Which countries have embraced a 4-day workweek and hows it going. If you enjoyed this story you can sign up to our weekly email forEnergy Live News and if youre interested in hearing more about the journey to net zero by 2050, you can also sign up to thefuture Net Zeronewsletter. National Grid expects that the French IFA interconnector will restart full operations by December next year. For all media enquiries, please contact our press team on 01926 656536, The IFA interconnectoris currently out of service following a fire at our site in Sellindge. All quotes delayed a minimum of 15 minutes. Over 30 years experience in delivering secure, sustainable and affordable energy. [3] "There has been a fire at our IFA interconnector site in Sellindge and emergency services are in attendance," the National Grid stated. This HVDC-link is 73km (45 miles) long in route, with 70km (43 miles) between the two ends. ifa interconnector fire cause. 15.99MW would result in 15 MWs after the curtailment). All Rights Reserved. We thank you for you co-operation during this challenging period and we can assure you that we are endeavouring to return the IFA to full availability in a safe and timely manner. Wholesale electricity prices have soared after a fire at an interconnector linking the French and British power networks, the National Grid has reported. link, Last edited on 27 November 2022, at 00:36, "Interconnector customer portal | National Grid Group", "Kent's burnt-out electricity cable will take two more years to get back to full service", "HVDC Submarine Power Cables in the World", "How a Loose Anchor Cut Up Britain's Power Link With France", "Batteries act as first responders when UK-France interconnector trips", "National Grid site fire shuts down power cable between France and UK", "Fire shuts one of UK's most important power cables in midst of supply crunch", "Fire-damaged power link will be out for six months, says National Grid", "The UK's Energy Price Surge Could be Just Getting Started", http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/tna/+/http://www.dti.gov.uk/files/file11257.pdf/, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=HVDC_Cross-Channel&oldid=1124032410, This page was last edited on 27 November 2022, at 00:36. Cables are laid in pairs in four trenches so that the magnetic fields generated by the two conductors are largely cancelled. "The outage is going to lift the potential for price volatility as long as its offline. and of course demand will get higher as we move further into winter, said Glenn Rickson, head of European power analysis at S&P Global Platts Analytics. To maintain grid frequency and power, the National Grid has a variety of frequency response assets, of which market batteries are the first to respond. [9], This system remains the world's largest-capacity submarine cable HVDC system. National Grid has four operational interconnectors - two to France (IFA and IFA2), one to the Netherlands (BritNed) and one to Belgium (Nemo Link). National Grid announced that half of its capacity would be restored on 20 October 2021, with full capacity being restored by October 2023. why is marram grass important. [15][16] On 15 October 2021, National Grid announced that half of the link capacity would be restored within the next few days, that 75% capacity would be available between October 2022 and May 2023, and that they hoped to restore full capacity by October 2023.[3]. We will then undertake further work in order to bring the full 2000MW back by October 2023. Earlier this week, the GMB Union called for a new generation of nuclear power plants in order the help UK meet its 2050 net-zero carbon emissions pledge. Another cable linking the two electricity systems, IFA-2, was also completed earlier this year, although yesterdays incident will not have any impact on it, the National Grid added. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); SJP Business Media. The cable had a length of 65km (40 miles) and was operated symmetrically at a voltage of 100kV and a maximum current of 800amperes. The fire at the IFA site essentially means the loss of 2 gigawatts (GW) of interconnection capacity between the UK and France which further tightens the supply situation in the UK, said Roy Manuell, EU power and carbon analyst at ICIS Energy. BritNed and Nemo Link interconnectors are also operating at full capacity, the grid said. [6] Given that the cable was laid on the surface of the seabed it was prone to being fouled by fishing nets, causing damage. On Wednesday, National Grid said the fire. "We are completely focused on getting. A key substation at Kent was left damaged by a fire in September. Which countries in the EU are buying the most electric cars? We have extended the outage on the other 1000MW, which was offline due to a planned outage, until 25 September. Critics say it's not enough. See here for a complete list of exchanges and delays. We will provide a further update in due course. According to local media reports, the IFA1 interconnector is expected to be offline until 13 October. Build the strongest argument relying on authoritative content, attorney-editor expertise, and industry defining technology. Gas and electricity prices surged yesterday, with month-ahead gas prices hitting all-time highs, after National Grid confirmed that the blaze at a site in Kent had caused the closure of the IFA . IFA2 Interconnector Commissioned in 2020, IFA2 is the second link to France that National Grid has developed with RTE. A major fire impacted the GB side of the interconnector, with 12 fire engines on-site to deal with the blaze. It will then be able to undertake further work to bring the full 2,000MW back by October 2023. According to local media reports, the IFA1 interconnector is expected to be offline until 13 October. National Grid, which owns the 2,000 megawatt cable, expects half of its capacity to return to service on Wednesday but said extensive work would be needed to bring the power link back to full service. We can confirm the fire has been put out and Kent Fire & Rescue Service has left the IFA converter station site at 9.05 this morning. Browse an unrivalled portfolio of real-time and historical market data and insights from worldwide sources and experts. We will bring 500MW back to service from October 2022 through to May 2023. The IFA2 interconnector, a second link between Britain and France commissioned in 2020, is operating at full capacity. National Grid has four operational interconnectors - two to France (IFA and IFA2), one to the Netherlands (BritNed) and one to Belgium (Nemo Link). This was eventually decommissioned in 1984 and replaced by a second link capable of carrying 2GW in 1986. January 25, 2021, by Adis Ajdin. In common with the 1961 scheme, there is no provision to permit neutral current to flow through the sea. sims 4 occult baby traits; 22 . Smart navigation app uses 3D sound to guide blind people. The EU Commission and the UK Government continue to negotiate the terms of a free trade deal. The cable, known as the IFA Interconnector, will finally return to full service after further work, which National Grid hopes to complete by October 2023. To give you the best experience, we ask that you enable cookies. Our interconnectors deliver secure and affordable electricity and play a critical role in tomorrows cleaner and smarter energy systems. In addition, we will no longer need to take Bipole 1 out of service from May 2023 to October 2023, as communicated in our previous REMIT notification. "We are in discussions with the UK electricity system operator (ESO) and our European partners to ensure we optimise upcoming planned pre-winter outages of our other interconnectors to support UK security of supply," it said. This will result in 1500MW of available capacity going into next Winter. This is in addition to the 1000MW that is unavailable until Friday 17 September due to a planned outage. The site has been evacuated and the safety of our staff, emergency teams and local residents is our highest priority. Arc-faults can be caused by things as innocent as putting a nail in the wall to hang a picture or plugging in an appliance with a defective electrical cord. The shock shutdown of the subsea cable sparked concern among industry experts over Britains energy supplies during record high market prices across Europe. The landside parts of the link consist of 8cables with lengths of 18.5km (11.5 miles) in England, and 6.35km (3.95 miles) in France.[8]. A fire at National Grid's IFA interconnector has led to the site in Sellindge, Kent to be evacuated but it could now seriously affect energy costs.