ElecLink maintenance and monitoring inspections - Expert advice to CTSA

Tender description

The Channel Tunnel comprises two railway running tunnels and a service tunnel between the UK terminal in Folkestone and the French terminal in Coquelles. An electrical interconnector cable is installed through the North running tunnel. The interconnector, known as the ElecLink interconnector, is a 1GW electrical interconnector operating between the United Kingdom and France, through two direct current cables inside the Channel Tunnel. These enable electricity produced on either side of the Channel to circulate between the two countries. The Intergovernmental Commission (IGC) is currently the National Safety Authority (NSA) for the UK half of the Channel Tunnel. The IGC exercises delegated authority from both the French and UK Governments and its decisions are made jointly by the UK and French Heads of Delegation. The IGC was previously the NSA for the whole of the Fixed Link, but since 1 January 2021, and following the UK's withdrawal from the EU, the French railway regulator Établissement Public de Sécurité Ferroviaire (EPSF) has taken on the role of NSA for the French half of the Tunnel.