The icelandic company Landsvirkjun,
owned by Iceland’s
government, will spend the next few years researching the feasibility of a
submarine line from the island nation of Iceland
to Germany and the rest of
mainland Europe. The exciting project came
after the announcement that Iceland’s
green energy production has surpassed its own energy usage, and is looking to
ease Europe’s need for green energy, while
also making a small profit themselves.
The financial feasibility is only
one of the concerns that Iceland
is looking in to right now. They are also studying the environmental and
cultural implications of the cable that promises to be the world’s longest
submerged power line. The 1,200 mile journey across the waters was deemed
infeasible in years past, but with the necessity to end Europe’s
dependence on highly expensive petroleum based energy, the equation for the
situation has altered fundamentally.
Should the company find no major
flaws with the submarine cable, research and production will hopefully begin
soon. Iceland’s solar and
tidal energy could help the small nation reach its goal of providing 1.5
terawatt hours of energy to Europe’s power
hungry industrial areas. By becoming one of the leading nations in exporting
sustainable energy to other countries, Iceland is setting a valuable
precedent that should be looked to by every nation. If more countries can focus
on producing green energy, the costs of the technology will fall, making it
more available to everyone.
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