PICTURES: Cable-laying under way off Caithness coast as part of £660m Shetland energy project
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The first phase of cable-laying as part of the £660 million Shetland subsea power link project has begun off the Caithness coast.
The Shetland High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) scheme will connect the islands to the main GB energy system for the first time.
It will support Shetland’s future security of supply as well as enabling the connection of renewable energy generation.
The beginning of the cable was pulled in to where it makes landfall at Noss Head, north of Wick, from aboard the specialist cable-laying vessel NKT Victoria.
The ship is working its way out to sea along the designated cable route and installing the first 100km of subsea cable and fibre-optic cable on the seabed.
The vessel set sail this week and is expected to complete the first 100km of cable-laying by mid-July.
Energy firm SSEN Transmission called it a "major milestone", following on from the recent clearance of boulders along the proposed route of the Shetland HVDC link and the ongoing work to create a clear corridor in preparation for the cable installation.
Once the cable is in place on the seabed, it will be trenched into position using a multi-role construction support vessel, Grand Canyon III, with a specialist subsea jet trencher which will ensure the cables are buried to the correct depth.
Rock placement will also take place at some sections to ensure the cables are protected where trenching is not possible.
The purpose-built NKT Victoria will lay the cables in three campaigns. The first of these, from Noss Head along 100km to a point to the east of Orkney, is now under way.
The second is expected to begin in March 2023 and will involve another 57km of cable from Weisdale Voe in Shetland, heading south.
The third campaign will take place later in 2023, completing the link between the first and second in the North Sea to join all three together. This will complete the full 260km subsea HVDC route.
The link is the first transmission connection between Shetland and the Scottish mainland.
SSEN Transmission lead project manager Chris Finnigan said: “We are delighted that specialist cable-laying vessel NKT Victoria has begun this major milestone in kicking off the first subsea cable installation campaign on the Shetland HVDC link.
“The installation of the subsea cable is one of the major components of the Shetland HVDC link project, and it marks an exciting step in the project for SSEN Transmission and our contractors. We look forward to the completion of this first subsea cable campaign over the coming weeks.”
