National Grid has named Sumitomo Electric as the preferred bidder to supply and install subsea cables for its 2-gigawatt (GW) Sea Link project, a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) connection set to run between Kent and Suffolk.
The 138-kilometre connection will run largely under the sea, including through the Thames Estuary and southern North Sea, and is intended to boost the UK’s grid capacity while supporting the flow of renewable and low-carbon electricity across the country.
National Grid said Sumitomo Electric will manufacture the 525kV HVDC cables at a new £350 million factory under construction at the Port of Nigg in Scotland. The facility will be the first to produce HVDC transmission cables in the UK in more than 20 years.
“The selection of Sumitomo Electric as preferred bidder, and the use of UK-based cable manufacturing for the first time in decades, is a major step forward,” said Zac Richardson, chief engineer and offshore delivery director at National Grid. “It will bring real investment in UK jobs, skills and industrial capability.”
The project is expected to support 150 jobs at the Nigg facility and contribute to broader supply chain development. Sea Link forms part of National Grid’s wider strategic infrastructure programme, which it says could support around 55,000 jobs across the UK by 2030.
Masaki Shirayama, managing director of Sumitomo Electric, said the company is committed to delivering the project “in timely manner with the highest standards of safety and quality.”
UK energy minister Michael Shanks welcomed the agreement, stating: “By working together across the UK, we unlock the full potential of clean power and deliver the economic benefits for every part of the country.”
Siemens Energy has been selected to construct the converter stations for the project. Construction timelines have not yet been announced.
