IFA-2

IFA-2
Map of IFA-2
Location
Country	France, United Kingdom
Coordinates	50°49′5″N 1°11′38″W 49°6′38.9″N 0°15′43.2″W
General direction	North–South
From	Tourbe, France
Passes through	English Channel
To	Lee-on-the-Solent, Hampshire, United Kingdom
Ownership information
Partners	National Grid plc Réseau de Transport d'Électricité
Construction information
Manufacturer of conductor/cable	Prysmian Group
Manufacturer of substations	ABB Group
Construction started	2017
Commissioned	January 2021[1]
Technical information
Type	submarine cable
Type of current	HVDC
Total length	204 km (127 mi)
Power rating	1,000 MW
DC voltage	±320 kV
No. of poles	2
No. of circuits	1

IFA-2 (Interconnexion France-Angleterre 2) is a subsea electrical interconnector, running beneath the English Channel between France and the United Kingdom.^[2] The 204-kilometre (127 mi) high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable operates at +/-320kV with the capacity to transmit 1,000 MW of power.^[3] IFA-2 is the second interconnector built between France and Great Britain, after IFA (HVDC Cross-Channel) link.

Route

The cable connects to the French grid at the Tourbe 400 kV substation. From there, a 300 m (1,000 ft) long high-voltage alternating current (HVAC) underground cable runs to the converter station nearby. A 24 km (15-mile) long underground HVDC cable runs from the converter station to the landfall point east of Merville-Franceville-Plage, near Caen in Normandy.

On the British side, the landfall point is located at Monks Hill Beach, at the southern end of Solent Airfield, near Portsmouth. The converter station is located to the north east of Solent Airfield. From there, a 2 km (1.2-mile) long HVAC cable runs underwater to the point of connection to the grid at Chilling 400 kV substation, near Warsash, Hampshire.^[2]

Project history

The project was developed by IFA2 SAS, a joint venture between the UK's National Grid and RTE of France.^[3]

In 2015, the European Commission identified IFA-2 as one of key energy infrastructure projects.^[2]

In 2017, contract for IFA-2 was awarded to the Prysmian Group and ABB. ^[3]

Normand Pacific in the Solent for cable burial works on IFA-2^[4]

In October 2019, the project completed the external construction of the UK convertor building. ^[5] Cable laying works in the eastern Solent took place at the end of 2019.^[4]

The cable was energised for the first time on 15 October 2020, in preparation for testing before going live.^[6] It was placed into live operation on 22 January 2021 with an opening flow from France to the UK.^[1] The connector tripped in the morning of January 29, causing a loss of 900 MW, and grid batteries compensated some of the loss to keep frequency drop at 0.25 Hz.^[7]

See also

• ElecLink, a 1,000 MW UK-France interconnector through the Channel Tunnel, completed in 2021

References

1. "Cross-channel power link for 1 m British homes opens". The Guardian. 22 January 2021.
2. "IFA2 – Interconnextion France Angleterre". National Grid. Archived from the original on 2018-02-09. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
3. "Bridging UK and France with Electricity". Prysmian Group. Retrieved 2019-11-30.
4. Sherwood, G.A.F (29 October 2019). "IFA2 CABLE LAY AND BURIAL CAMPAIGN – EASTERN SOLENT". national archives. royal navy. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
5. "IFA2 'Tops out' at Daedalus Airfield". ifa2interconnector.com. IFA2. 3 Oct 2020. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
6. "National Grid's new undersea power cable between Britain and France energises race to net zero". IFA-2. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
7. "Dynamic Containment assets jump into action following French interconnector trip". Current. Archived from the original on 1 February 2021.

External links

• IFA2 Interconnector
• RTE website
• IFA-2 Corporate website Archived 2018-02-09 at the Wayback Machine
• Non-technical summary (pdf) Archived 2017-02-02 at the Wayback Machine
• Copy of information boards displayed in 2017 (pdf)^{[permanent dead link‍]}