National Grid has hailed the ‘busiest January on record’ for its interconnectors.

Official data shows that nearly 2.6TWh of power has been transported across National Grid’s five subsea electricity cables in the first month of the year, around 12% more than the same period last year and 39% higher than two years ago.

The company’s five subsea interconnectors, which connect Britain with France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway have transported an average of 91GWh per day.

National Grid has confirmed that the UK has currently more interconnector capacity than ever before as its IFA cable has returned to full service on 27th January, taking overall capacity to 8.4GW.

Travelling just more than 40 miles across the English Channel, the 2GW IFA cable links Sellindge in Kent with Les Mandarins in Normandy.

In September 2021, it suffered a serious fire and has been operating at a reduced availability since returning to service at half capacity in October 2021.

Managing Director of National Grid Interconnectors Nicola Medalova said: “Our interconnectors help to make Britain’s energy system more secure, enabling system operators to access electricity at the flick of a switch to respond to sudden changes in demand and supply.

“As we move toward a zero-carbon economy, the cooperation with our neighbours that we have seen this winter will be increasingly important, which is why it’s so wonderful to see such strong performance in a difficult period.”