Norway and the United Kingdom have signed an agreement on cross-border trade in electricity and cooperation on electricity interconnection.

The agreement contains core principles for electricity trading and was signed on Thursday September 16th by Norwegian State Secretary Lars Andreas Lunde and the British ambassador Richard Wood.

Image source: OED

The agreement will contribute to a predictable framework for cross border trade in electricity between Norway and the United Kingdom, after the latter's exit from the EU.

The agreement also covers cooperation on the development of offshore wind power and related infrastructure in the North Sea.

"The agreement will contribute to a predictable framework for electricity trading and strengthen the cooperation between our two countries. It is a follow-up of Norway's free trade agreement with the United Kingdom", says State Secretary Lars Andreas Lunde in the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

The agreement has been negotiated by the Norwegian Ministry and the British Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, parallel to the free trade negotiations between the EEA countries and the United Kingdom. It is in line with the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom.

The agreement does not contain obligations to carry out any projects and can be terminated with twelve months' notice. The North Sea Link interconnector received its license in 2014 and is based on an agreement between Statnett and their partner in the United Kingdom, National Grid.