"Supergrid" is the future electricity system that will enable Europe to undertake a once-off transition to sustainability.
The concept of Supergrid was first launched a decade ago and it is defined as "a pan-European transmission network facilitating the integration of large-scale renewable energy and the balancing and transportation of electricity, with the aim of improving the European market".
Supergrid is not an extension of existing or planned point to point HVDC interconnectors between particular EU states. Even the aggregation of these schemes will not provide the network that will be needed to carry marine renewable power generated in our Northern seas to the load centres of central Europe. Supergrid is a new idea. Unlike point to point connections, Supergrid will involve the creation of "Supernodes" to collect, integrate and route the renewable energy to the best available markets. Supergrid is a trading tool which will enhance the security of supply of all the countries of the EU.
There can, of course, be many forms of Supergrid. The Offshore Supergrid is based on the seas around North Western Europe. There will be others, such as a Solar Supergrid in the Mediterranean. These grids will ultimately be linked to supply electricity across the EU.