Shortly after this, National Grid Lion Link Limited applied for the electricity interconnector with the UK energy market regulator Ofgem, requesting a licence that would authorise it to participate in the operation of the interconnector in Great Britain. In the Netherlands, TenneT contracted GEOxyz in 2023 to carry out geophysical and geotechnical surveys for the export cable route for the Nederwiek 3 offshore wind farm and in May 2024, Next Geosolutions kicked off a cable route survey for the LionLink line in the UK.
At the beginning of last year, Dutch Climate and Green Growth Minister Sophie Hermans included LionLink in the country’s latest Offshore Wind Energy Development Framework. In the UK, LionLink expects to apply for the Development Consent Order (DCO) with the Planning Inspectorate in 2026 and to receive a decision in 2027.