Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), through its wholly-owned subsidiary Diamond Transmission Corporation (DTC), has been selected as the preferred bidder for a new, offshore electricity transmission link in the UK.
According to a press release, this marks the seventh electricity transmission project for MC in the UK. The new offshore electricity transmission asset connects the Galloper Offshore Windfarm (generation capacity of 353MW), situated approximately 30 km off the country's eastern coast, with the Sizewell substation. The transmission line is composed of subsea and land cables and offshore and onshore substations, and is valued at GBP 329.1 million.
MC will execute this electricity transmission business for a 20-year period starting around the second quarter of 2019, following successful acquisition of the asset and the granting of an Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) license by the UK's Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem).
With the acquisition of the Galloper Offshore Windfarm transmission link, DTC will now be operating seven offshore transmission assets in the UK, which is the largest share considering that there is a total of 19 assets across the country. Combined with four others held in Germany, the number of power transmission assets held by DTC in Europe will add up to eleven, for a gross transmission length of approximately 1,000 km and an electricity transmission capacity of around 5.3 GW.
DTC is seeking to expand its independent management functions and deepen its commitments in the offshore transmission business by leveraging the skills of its highly qualified in-house team of technical and accounting specialists.
A European Commission roadmap suggests the EU is aiming to cut its greenhouse gas emissions to 80% of 1990 levels by 2050. In line with that target, the EU expects to generate some 50 GW of offshore wind power capacity by 2030. The availability of stably operated undersea cable transmission systems that connect offshore wind power generation plants to onland power grids is increasingly critical in that context.
For its part, MC sees its participation in offshore transmission and other businesses that contribute to reducing greenhouse emissions as an opportunity to realize its vision of simultaneously generating economic, societal and environmental value through its businesses.