This project, called “Celtic Interconnector”, should be commissioned in 2026.
The government has declared of public interest the project to create a first electricity link France-Ireland, supposed to promote the development of renewables and strengthen the security of supply of the two countries, according to a decree published on Sunday in the Official Journal.
The text of the Ministry of Energy Transition, dated August 26, 2022, declares of public utility “work to create an underwater and underground 320,000 volt direct current electrical link between the converter station in Ireland and the converter station located in La Martyre (France)“, in Finistère. Also concerned is a connection “underground alternating current at 400,000 volts connecting the French converter station on the territory of the municipality of La Martyre to the existing electrical substation based on the same municipality“.
This project, calledCeltic Interconnector“, must be commissioned in 2026, according to its carriers, the French electricity network operator RTE and its Irish counterpart Eirgrid. This link, approximately 575 km long (including nearly 500 km at sea), should facilitatethe development of renewable energies” and “strengthen electricity solidarity between the two countries“, according to RTE. The project, estimated at around 1 billion euros, should also reduce Ireland’s dependence on its British neighbor in the context of Brexit. It has been recognized as a project of common interest (PIC) by the European Union.