Regulatory Other

On 11 February 2026, Ofgem and France's Commission de regulation de l'energie (CRE) published an updated joint statement on the opportunity for further electricity interconnection capacity between Great Britain and France. The two National Regulatory Authorities concluded that, at this stage, the conditions are not met for either NRA to grant regulatory approval for a new interconnector between GB and France. They committed instead to a joint in-depth study, to be advanced within the next one to two years, to explore the need for new FR-GB interconnection projects and the potential cost-sharing mechanisms. The decision applies in principle to all candidate FR-GB projects under joint regulatory consideration, including FAB Link, GridLink and the GetLink Eurotunnel-route project; Ofgem had already rejected Aquind's cap-and-floor application in 2024. Implications for FAB Link's status. Arguments that this pushes the project effectively on hold: RTE's own French page describes the scheme as in hibernation (sous cocon) since 2018 awaiting a regulatory decision; without French-side approval the project cannot reach FID; Ofgem's November 2022 letter had set the implicit FID milestone for end-2026; and FAB Link's own news channel has been silent since March 2024. Arguments for keeping the project as consented: the GB cap-and-floor regime "in principle" retained in November 2022 is unchanged; the 2023 East Devon District Council planning permission for the converter station, the UK MMO Marine Licence and the Alderney FEPA Licence all remain in force; and the developer has issued no formal pause statement. On balance the project is kept as consented, with this event recording the regulatory deferral that materially reduces the probability of FID by Ofgem's end-2026 reference point.