Work has commenced on a €600 million energy project that will connect the Irish and British power grids.
Eirgrid today began laying underwater cables for the East-West Interconnector which should be capable of transporting enough energy to power 300,000 homes when it is completed.
The development is also expected to bring a greater level of competition to the energy sector and opens up the possibility of Ireland exporting wind energy to Britain and beyond. The project is scheduled to finish before the end of 2012.
A cable laying ship, Nostag 10, has anchored itself at North Beach, Rush, Co Dublin today as work on laying the marine cables begins.
The vessel will lay some 180km of undersea cable into a trench running between Rush and Barkby Beach in Wales over the next eight months.
A further 80km of cable will be used to link converter stations, where the energy is adapted for use on the relevant grid, on either side of the Irish Sea.
The Irish convertor station is being constructed at Woodlands, Co Meath with the British one being built at Shotton in Wales.
The interconnector plan came under opposition last year from locals in the Rush area, who cited health and safety concerns about energy cables and ducting being laid close to homes and businesses. Eirgrid sought court injunctions against a number of individuals last November following protests over the project, warning that delays would cost €100,000 per day and that the costs would likely be borne by electricity customers.
Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources Pat Rabbitte said the interconnector would help Ireland to achieve its target of 20 per cent of energy coming from renewable sources by 2020.
"Witnessing the laying of the marine cable across the Irish Sea is symbolic of linking Ireland, a geographically isolated Island, to the single European energy market which will ultimately benefit all electricity consumers and generators," he said.
