Connecting the Power Grids of Ireland and Great Britain

Stokbord cable covers were specified by main contractor ABB to protect all onshore elements of the EirGrid East-West Interconnector, a high priority European infrastructure project to enable the cross-border transportation of power between Ireland and Great Britain.

Completed in 2012, the HVDC link connects the Irish Grid to the British Grid and also provides Ireland with access to European transmission networks via similar links between England and the continent.

The link is designed to enable Ireland to both import and export power from and to the UK and the continent, providing greater energy security and helping Ireland to create a more competitive home energy market. It will also help Ireland to meet its ‘green energy’ targets by encouraging the development of renewable energy sources while enabling the closure of older, inefficient power plants.

The new HVDC link, which connects converter stations at Rush, North Beach, Co Dublin and Shotton in North Wales, has a total length of 261 kilometres. 186 kilometres is submarine under the Irish Sea and 75 kilometres is subsoil cable. Main contractor ABB specified Stokbord recycled plastic protection covers for all onshore components of the cable in both Ireland and Wales.

Manufactured from 100% recycled plastic, Stokbord cable protection covers are a heavy duty product ideal for use with high voltage power cables from 11kV to 400kV, including HVDC. High visibility Stokbord cable covers are a direct replacement for concrete and steel plate covers and offer numerous advantages over the traditional systems.