The cost of the electrical interconnection project between Britain and Morocco reaches $30 billion

In the new electrical interconnection project between Morocco and Britain, which is expected to supply more than seven million homes in the United Kingdom with electricity, thus meeting about 8 percent of this country’s electrical needs by the year 2030 through high-voltage submarine cables with a length of about 4,000 kilometers, passing through every… From France, Spain and Portugal; The expected cost of this project has increased by billions of dollars due to economic pressures, according to what was reported by the “X-Links” company supervising this project.

The company itself explained, in a statement on its website, that “the current cost of implementing this project, as of this month, will amount to between 22 and 24 billion pounds sterling, that is, between 27 and 30 billion US dollars,” compared to the previous cost, which was estimated at about 25 billion dollars. American, and estimated “the cost of producing the electricity that the project will generate at between 70 and 80 British pounds per megawatt hour, based on 2012 prices.”

“X-Links” attributed this increase to “the major economic pressures witnessed in the costs of energy projects,” noting that about 60 percent of this increase was driven by the pressures experienced by supply chains, as well as the impact of global events on the latter, including increases in costs. raw materials, as well as the global increase in demand for renewable energy sources, while the other 40% relates to direct economic pressures, especially rising interest rates.

The same statement quoted James Humphrey, CEO of the same company, as saying that these new price updates are generally in line with what we are seeing in the market, noting at the same time that “X-Links remains committed to delivering the energy project between Morocco and the United Kingdom in the next decade.” “To provide 8% of the UK’s electricity demand, with clean, reliable and affordable energy, good progress continues to be made in raising the private capital needed to implement the project, as well as constructive dialogue with key stakeholders, including the UK Department of Energy Security.” .

In an answer to the Ministry of Energy Security to a parliamentary question last November, the British government confirmed its interest in this project, which will exclusively provide electrical energy to millions of Britons from solar and wind farms in the Guelmim-Oued Noun region, in order to relieve pressure on the growing demand for electricity in the Kingdom. United.