The European Commission has agreed to provide €530 million of funding to the Celtic Interconnector, a high-voltage electricity cable linking Ireland and France.
The project is being developed by Irish grid operator EirGrid PLC and its French counterpart Réseau de Transport d'Electricité. The developers estimate that the Celtic Interconnector will cost €1 billion to build.
The power line, which will be Ireland's first direct electricity link to continental Europe, will travel 575 km from East Cork to the north-west coast of Brittany. It will be able to import and export up to 700 MW of electricity upon its expected completion in 2026.
"The support of the European Commission for this electricity interconnector between France and Ireland is a major step forward in the development of an always sustainable, cost efficient, resilient and integrated European grid which will enable the transition to a low carbon energy future," said RTE Chairman François Brottes in an Oct. 2 statement.
The companies submitted the grant application under the European Commission's 2019 Connecting Europe Facility energy program.
