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[Adam]

Just seen this in The Telegraph:

Eurotunnel to carry electricity from France to UK

Electricity will flow between Britain and France alongside Eurostar trains, after the operator of the Channel Tunnel unveiled a €250m (£217m) plan to run a cable under the sea.

By Rowena Mason 2:21PM BST 26 May 2011

Eurotunnel has proposed an interconnector cable with France to help smooth volatility in energy supplies.

Britain's electricity generation will become more varied as the country moves towards a system that relies more heavily on wind generation. Turbines can produce power only during windy conditions. Despite this they are expected to produce a third of Britain's electricity by 2020.

The new 500 megawatt cable will connect to Britain power system in Kent on the UK side and near Coquelles in France. The project, which could take two years to build, will be 49pc owned by Eurotunnel with Star Capital, the infrastructure fund, taking the remainder.

There are already eight other interconnectors planned between the UK and Europe, which could eventually handle around six gigawatts of electricity.

Network operator National Grid already runs a two gigawatt link to France and a one gigawatt link to Holland. If it proves successful, the size of the cable, which will be known as ElecLink, could be increased to one gigawatt.

Interesting idea - and good to hear they have covered off the big risk, which I am sure most would be concerned with.