Isle of Man to England Interconnector

{{Short description|Subsea electricity cable between British mainland and Isle of Man}}

{{Infobox power transmission line

| name = Isle of Man to England Interconnector

| photo =

| caption =

| map = {{maplink |type=line |frame=yes |plain=yes |frame-align=center |zoom=5}}

| map_caption =

| country = United Kingdom & Isle of Man

| state =

| province =

| coordinates = {{Coord|53|50|57|N|03|01|46|W}}
{{Coord|54|08|52|N|4|28|51|W}}

| direction =

| start = Bispham, Blackpool, England

| through = Irish Sea

| finish = Douglas Head, Isle of Man

| par =

| owner =

| partners = National Grid plc

| operator =

| cable_manufacturer= BICC, Erith
Pirelli Cables, Southampton

| cable_installer=

| cable_layer =

| substation_manufacturer=

| substation_installer=

| contractors =

| construction= 1999

| expected =

| est = 2000

| decom =

| type = submarine cable

| current_type= AC

| length_km = 104

| capacity = 40{{nbsp}}MW

| AC_voltage = 90{{nbsp}}kV

| poles_no =

| circuits_no =

}}

The Isle of Man to England Interconnector is a submarine power cable connecting the transmission system of the Manx Utilities Authority to that of Great Britain. With an undersea section of approximately {{convert|104|km|mi|0|abbr=in}},{{cite conference| first = B. | last = Howarth |author2=Coates, M. |author3=Renforth, L.| title = Fault location techniques for one of the World's longest AC interconnector cables| book-title = 8th IEE International Conference on AC and DC Power Transmission| pages = 14–18| date = March 2006| isbn=0-86341-613-6}} it is the second-longest AC undersea cable in the world.{{cite web|url=http://www.gov.im/mea/projects/|title=The Longest AC Subsea Cable in the World|work=Major Assets|publisher=Manx Electricity Authority|access-date=2008-10-22}}{{efn|Longer undersea cables exist, but all operate on direct current.}}

Route

It was laid in 1999 between Bispham, Blackpool, England, and Douglas Head on the Isle of Man, commencing commercial operations in November 2000. It is capable of continuous operation of 40{{nbsp}}MW at 90{{nbsp}}kV (although other sources say 65{{nbsp}}MW at 132{{nbsp}}kV AC{{cite web|url=http://www.awjmarine.co.uk/fishery-liaison/isle-of-man-interconnector/|title=Isle of Man Interconnector Cable|date=n.d.|access-date=14 June 2021|publisher=AWJ Marine}}{{cite web|url=https://www.manxutilities.im/about-us/our-assets/electricity/subsea-cable/|title=Subsea cable|date=n.d.|access-date=14 June 2021|publisher=Manx Utilities}})

Structure

The cable was manufactured in two parts: one section at the former BICC works in Erith and the other at Pirelli Cables in Southampton. It ended the Isle of Man's dependence on local diesel-powered generation. Power supplies to the island were increased in 2003 by an 85{{nbsp}}MW combined cycle gas turbine power station at Pulrose, in the capital, Douglas.{{cite journal|last=Pickin|first=M|date=2004|title=Power to Pulrose|journal=Power Engineer|volume=18|publisher=IEEE|issue=1|pages=14–16|issn=1479-8344}}

The electricity cable is bundled with a fibre-optic cable which is used for telecommunications. The cable is owned by e-llan Communications, which is part of Manx Utilities. The electricity cable is used for importing and exporting electricity between the Isle of Man and the GB National Grid.{{cite web|url=http://www.gasnet.com.br/artigos/artigos_view2.asp?cod=534|title=ISLE OF MAN PLANT HAS NOVEL DESIGNS|publisher=Turbomachinery International|author=Eric Jeffs|date=May–June 2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041224050220/http://www.gasnet.com.br/artigos/artigos_view2.asp?cod=534|archive-date=2004-12-24}}

The cable is mostly buried at around {{convert|2|m|ft|abbr=on|0}} depth but is on the seabed surface at six locations with protective cable mattresses.

Capacity

On the 20th anniversary in 2020 of its commissioning a total of 1.5{{nbsp}}TWh of power has been exported to the UK grid which contributed £47{{nbsp}}million to the revenue of the Isle of Man.{{Cite web |title=20 years of subsea cables celebrated by partnering with Marine Nature Reserves |url=https://www.manxutilities.im/news/2020/dec/20-years-of-subsea-cables-celebrated-by-partnering-with-marine-nature-reserves/ |access-date=5 November 2022}}

The amount of electricity sold to the UK since 2014{{ndash}}15 and the revenue gained each year was as follows:{{cite web | url = https://www.manxutilities.im/about-us/annual-reports-financial-statements/annual-reports-financial-statements/ | publisher = Manx Utilities Authority | title = Annual Reports & Financial Statements | access-date = 2 February 2022}}

class="wikitable"

|Year

|2014{{ndash}}15

|2015{{ndash}}16

|2016{{ndash}}17

|2017{{ndash}}18

|2018{{ndash}}19

|2019{{ndash}}20

|2020{{ndash}}21

Electricity to the UK, GWh

|93

|87