Investing in electrical interconnections

Immediate economic benefits and a key role in the energy transition

From 2030 onwards, France will probably need to build more electricity interconnections with its neighbors to facilitate the integration of renewable energies into the grid. The government's determination to meet energy transition targets and the prospects for electricity storage make interconnections a key tool for balancing national grids.

The current economic situation, linked to the Covid-19 health crisis, calls for both public and private investment to be stimulated. The multiplier effect of investment is particularly high today, due to the economic situation, especially in infrastructure. We need to bring forward investments planned for the future, and complete useful, financed projects. In this respect, interconnections, which facilitate the transition to renewable energies, are a textbook case for a post-crisis Green Deal.

Investing today in interconnections with certain countries, such as the UK, creates direct economic value through the purchase and sale of electricity. In this way, the complementary nature of our electricity systems generates an economic surplus. France will export its electricity, which will improve its trade balance and slightly reduce the cost of supporting renewable energies. In addition to their long-term ecological benefits, interconnections have a short-term economic interest.

Aquind's interconnection project between the UK and France therefore represents an opportunity to invest locally (in Normandy) with a high multiplier effect in an infrastructure that will enable France to export its electricity and help balance the grids. What's more, the company is proposing to finance the entire investment from private funds, which cancels out the collective risk. The money raised by this investment does not replace any other potential investment.

Asterès was commissioned by Aquind to carry out an economic study of electricity interconnections in the current economic crisis.