BAM wins southern converter station for Eastern Green Link 3

Overview

Updated 1 hour ago

BAM UK & Ireland will build the southern converter station for Eastern Green Link 3, a 2-gigawatt electricity link planned between Peterhead in Aberdeenshire and Walpole in Norfolk. National Grid awarded the contract on 9 November. BAM already holds the early works deal for the northern converter station near Peterhead.

The link is one of three Scotland-England cables meant to move wind power south and ease a grid bottleneck that forces turbines off. It still needs planning consent in England. Construction is due in 2028, with first power forecast for 2033.

Why it matters

If built, EGL3 can power about two million homes and cut payments made when Scottish wind farms are told to switch off.

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Key Indicators

2 GW

Transmission capacity

Rated capacity of the planned Peterhead to Walpole link.

690 km

Total link length

Onshore and subsea cable between Scotland and England.

580 km

Offshore cable

Approximate subsea length of the link.

£3bn

Converter and cable contracts

Combined value of the Hitachi Energy and NKT deals signed in March 2026.

2 million

Homes powered

Homes the completed link is designed to supply.

2033

Forecast energisation

Target year for the link to enter service, subject to consent.

Voices

Curated perspectives — historical figures and your fellow readers.

Organizations Involved

National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET)

Transmission network owner and developer

Awarded the southern converter station contract; co-developer of EGL3

Owns and operates the high-voltage electricity network in England and Wales.

SSEN Transmission

Electricity transmission network operator

Co-developer of EGL3; contracted BAM for northern converter station early works

Runs the high-voltage electricity network in northern Scotland.

BAM UK & Ireland

Construction contractor

Holds early works for northern converter station and construction contract for southern converter station

Construction and engineering contractor working on UK energy transmission projects.

Hitachi Energy

Technology provider

Delivery partner for EGL3 converter stations

Supplies high-voltage direct current equipment for power links.

NKT

Cable manufacturer

Delivery partner for EGL3 subsea and underground cable

Danish cable manufacturer supplying high-voltage power cables.

Mott MacDonald

Engineering consultancy

Lead civil and structural designer for BAM on the southern converter station

Engineering consultancy providing design services for infrastructure projects.

Timeline

August 2025 November 2026

4 events Latest: Today

Tap a bar to jump to that date

November 2026
National Grid appoints BAM for southern converter station
Today Contract

BAM won the contract to build the Walpole converter station in Norfolk, giving it work at both ends of EGL3.
Today
June 2026
BAM signs early works deal for northern converter station
Contract

SSEN Transmission brought BAM in for design and constructability support at the Peterhead site. Detailed construction is due to be awarded in 2027.
June 26th, 2026
March 2026
Converter and cable contracts signed
Contract

Hitachi Energy and NKT signed deals worth nearly £3 billion covering the converter stations and the 690-kilometre cable system.
March 4th, 2026
August 2025
Hitachi Energy named preferred bidder for EGL3 converter stations
Procurement

National Grid and SSEN Transmission selected Hitachi Energy to negotiate delivery of the converter stations at both ends of the link.
August 14th, 2025

Scenarios

Britain grants consent for EGL3's English works by end of 2027

Possible Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: National Grid project documents and New Civil Engineer

National Grid has said it will submit a planning application for the English onshore works later in 2026, after two rounds of public consultation. A development consent order from the energy secretary would clear the main regulatory hurdle. The Scottish converter site already has planning in principle through the Netherton Hub process.

Construction starts on EGL3 in 2028

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: National Grid and SSEN Transmission project timetables

National Grid's published timetable says construction begins in 2028, subject to consent. A start would mean site preparation and civil works at Walpole and Peterhead. BAM's contracts cover converter station construction, not the cable.

EGL3 enters service by 2033

Uncertain Resolves by End of 2033

Discussed by: National Grid and New Civil Engineer

The target is 2033. Hitting it depends on consent, cable manufacturing and construction at both converter stations. EGL1 and EGL2 are already under construction, so the supply chain is busy.

Historical Context

2 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2018

Western HVDC Link (2018)

A high-voltage subsea cable was built between Scotland and Wales to add capacity across the England-Scotland boundary. It was energised in 2018, after delays.

Then

The link added transmission capacity across the boundary.

Now

It showed that one cable cannot fix a boundary bottleneck, which is why more links were planned.

Why this matters now

EGL3 is the latest in that build-out, and its 2033 target depends on avoiding the delays that hit earlier cables.

2021