Early works underway on Peterhead subsea electricity project
Enabling works have begun on the proposed Eastern Green Link 2 converter station due to be constructed on a site south of Peterhead near Boddam.
The joint venture project between SSEN Transmission and National Grid Electricity Transmission will see around 440 km of subsea high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable connecting new converter stations planned for Peterhead and Yorkshire.
The project will help the Scottish and UK governments achieve their ambitious net zero climate targets, which will require vast amounts of renewable energy to be generated.
This subsea connection project will transport Scotland’s green energy to where it is needed, providing enough electricity to power two million homes.
To span the distance involved, converter stations are required to convert electricity from alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) which is suited to transporting electricity with less electrical losses. Plans for the converter station were consented in May 2022 by Aberdeenshire Council and construction is due to begin in late 2024 and be complete in 2029.
Preparing the site
To prepare for construction of the Peterhead converter station, a series of enabling works will take place on site between December 2023 and Autumn 2024. They will include:
- Two new permanent access roads with new junctions on the U66, along with a temporary road through the site for construction traffic.
- A site car park and erection of temporary site offices for use during construction.
- Construction of a new cable sealing end compound, and removal of two existing 132kV towers including an existing cable sealing end compound on the existing overhead line that crosses the site.
- Ground investigation works.
- Undergrounding of the existing 11kV overhead line within the converter station land boundary. A new 11kV connection will be installed into the site, running parallel with the A90. This work is being carried out by SSEN Distribution between January 2024 and April 2024.
How this will impact Peterhead residents
Temporary speed limit: To keep road users and our workers safe, a 30mph speed limit will be enforced for the duration of the enabling works (December 2023 to October 2024) on the road along the southern edge of the site (known as Unclassified Road 66) towards the junction with the A90. The current 40mph speed restriction of 40mph on the A90 around the junction with the U66 will also remain in place.
Traffic management on the A90 south of Peterhead: To facilitate a new underground cable (UGC) 11kV connection along the eastern boundary of the site, SSEN Distribution may put in place temporary traffic management on the A90 to provide additional safety measures for their operatives during installation.
Construction traffic and deliveries: Beginning in December, there will be some large truck deliveries of equipment, materials for the temporary and permanent access roads, and the temporary site offices, along with the delivery of various items of plant.
Hours of operation: Our contractor’s planned normal working hours will be 07:00 to 19:00 on Monday to Friday inclusive and 07:00 to 13:00 on Saturdays. There may be circumstances when some works will need to be completed outside of these hours.
We appreciate that works of this scale may impact our neighbours and local community. We commit to keeping you informed and minimising disruption where possible.
Keeping the community informed
More information on this project can be found on the project website. If you have any questions about the Peterhead works, please contact our Community Liaison Manager Gillian Doig at [email protected].
