National Grid to extend life of UK-France power link to 2050

LONDON, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Britain’s National Grid will invest up to £400 million ($531 million) to extend the life of the Interconnexion France-Angleterre (IFA) electricity link between Britain and France until at least 2050, the company said on Thursday.

• IFA is jointly owned by National Grid and French grid operator RTE. The interconnector has marked 40 years of operation

• The investment programme will upgrade technical equipment, buildings and facilities at the interconnector site

• IFA is Britain's largest subsea connection by capacity and can supply enough power for about 3 million British homes a year

• Typically the link imports power from France to Britain, but it can also send power in the other direction

• Britain has 10 operational power links with France, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Belgium and the Netherlands, with net imports supplying around 9% of Britain's electricity supply last year, government data shows

($1 = 0.7527 pounds)

(Reporting By Susanna Twidale; Editing by Xevi Fontdegloria)