NeuConnect has reached a key milestone with Siemens Energy delivering the first of seven HVDC transformers to its UK converter station site on the Isle of Grain in Kent.
The 200-tonne unit – 7 metres long and 5 metres tall – was shipped by barge from Siemens Energy’s Nürnberg factory via the Rhine to Rotterdam, then by sea and road to site. It will convert 1.4 GW bidirectional flows from the 725 km subsea interconnector linking the Isle of Grain to Wilhelmshaven, Germany, powering up to 1.5 million homes and balancing UK-German renewable generation.
Now in its third year of major UK construction, backed by Meridiam, Allianz, Kansai Electric Power and TEPCO, the £2.4bn/€2.8bn project shows rapid progress: Converter Hall “super structures” have reached full 24-metre height with cladding underway, while Prysmian’s Leonardo da Vinci – the world’s largest cable-laying vessel – has resumed installing 140 km of subsea cable in UK waters after a winter break, advancing toward Dutch and German sectors.
NeuConnect CEO Arnaud Grévoz said: “We have made a strong start to 2026 in our construction works, and the arrival of the first transformer marks another important milestone as we take delivery of key equipment that will help to power this vital new energy link.”
The interconnector will enhance European energy security by enabling renewable optimisation and peak shaving across major markets.
