SSEN Distribution announces £950m framework for investment in the subsea networks powering Scotland’s island communities
A new framework for investment is enabling long-term upgrades to the subsea distribution network serving Scotland’s islands, supporting greater network resilience and more capacity to boost further economic growth and customer choice. The certainty provided by these agreements with five specialist contract partners will help strengthen supply chains and support jobs.
SSEN-D have announced the five contract partners we will work with to deliver future investment of up to £950m in the subsea electricity network. This programme will renew and upgrade the subsea electricity links connecting island communities across Scotland, further improving resilience and increasing capacity to meet growing demand.
Running for an initial five-year period, with the option of an extension for a further three years, we estimate this framework investment will help support more than 450 specialised jobs for every year the agreements are in place, meaning well over 3,500 fixed-term roles could be sustained by the overall programme. These will be across framework partners as well as within our own subsea team. Positions will be in and around installation sites, and at company bases.
The network linking Scotland’s islands takes electricity on the final part of its journey to homes and businesses.
Ensuring these critical links are upgraded and renewed will allow customers to connect new technologies like EV chargers, solar panels and heat pumps to the network. These connections will also benefit local energy generators seeking to produce and export clean power. and they will support increased demand and decarbonisation — with its associated economic growth — by important island-based industries like distilleries.
Five contract partners will deliver investment on our behalf, with a strong focus on a more locally-based supply chain.
They are Burntisland-based Briggs Marine, DOF, Subsea UK and N-Sea Group - both of which have bases in Aberdeen; and Enshore Subsea and Jan de Nul Group.
Specific projects will be allocated according to each contract partner’s specialisms and resources. The participation of several framework partners will deliver additional benefits. These partners — and the resources like the specialised vessels they will have at their disposal — will give more scope to install multiple subsea cables at the same time during the relatively-narrow summer window when weather conditions are more favourable, and there will be a larger pool of contract partners to deploy if an unexpected network fault requires urgent inspection and repair.
In the longer term, upgrades to subsea connections will deliver more resilient and secure electricity connections for island communities, thus reducing the likelihood of needing to run locally-based backup power stations based on islands themselves.
The certainty these longer-term contracts give our partners will help them make strategic operational decisions. This will have a positive effect on the jobs and careers they are able to offer in local communities, while also providing greater certainty in the supply chain for the commissioners as we embark on the biggest phase yet of network development. And as the Just Transition for energy sector workers continues, these frameworks will support sustainable employment in the industry towards the delivery of a decarbonised grid.
SSEN-D’s long-term approach also aligns with the direction from the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), Ofgem and the UK and Scottish Governments on strategically planned, proactive investment. The recently-published Sector Growth Planpredicts the jobs involved in reinforcing electricity networks could contribute between £4 bn and £11 bn in Gross Value Added (GVA) by the middle of the century.
Gillian Martin MSP said:
“This welcome investment by SSEN Distribution will help upgrade the subsea network serving Scotland’s islands, improving its resilience and supporting Scotland’s net zero ambitions.
“It will also support thousands of high-quality green jobs and drive new growth across the local, regional and national economies as part of our net zero transformation.”
Gillian Martin and Kevin Galbraith,
Kevin Galbraith, SSEN Distribution’s Subsea Project Director (Large Capital Delivery) commented:
“Subsea connections are becoming ever-more important as Scotland’s island communities seek to invest in EV charging, heat pumps, and the decarbonisation of their industries.
“In addition to providing the networks fit for supporting this growth in the use of clean power, these framework agreements will also underpin the ambitions of islanders to generate, store, and export more renewable energy.
“The agreements themselves will ensure delivery of this investment will be rolled out in a seamless, co-ordinated way, and this will provide both customers and supply chains with the certainty they’re looking for.
“This multi-year investment will also provide greater job security and new opportunities for employment in this growing sector.”
Craig English, Briggs Marine Renewables’ Subsea & Environmental Services Director, added:
“We’re delighted to have been awarded all lots of the SSEN Distribution Supply & Install Subsea Cable Framework. This reflects the strength of our 23 year-long partnership with SSEN Distribution’s subsea team and our continued commitment to supporting the resilience and growth of its network.
“We look forward to helping deliver its ambitious strategic development and major capital programmes through our comprehensive subsea services and specialist marine & high voltage expertise”.