Marinus Link starts expanded construction of 1.5 GW HVDC cable to Tasmania
Serguey Asael Shinder2 min readMarinus Link, the planned second electricity interconnector between Tasmania and Victoria, held a ceremonial sod turn in north-west Tasmania in early October to mark the start of expanded construction on both sides of Bass Strait. Federal energy minister Chris Bowen, Tasmanian premier Jeremy Rockliff and Marinus Link chair Sandra Gamble attended.
The project. Marinus Link is a 1.5 GW high-voltage direct current link between north-west Tasmania and Victoria's Latrobe Valley, built in two stages of 750 MW. Its design lets power flow in either direction across the National Electricity Market. Stage 1 is due for completion in late 2030. The company delivering it, Marinus Link Pty Ltd, is government-owned: the Commonwealth holds 49%, Victoria 33.3% and Tasmania 17.7%. Hitachi Energy supplies the HVDC converter technology.
What gets built first. Cable and converter manufacturing and construction ramp up into 2027, starting at the Heybridge and Hazelwood North converter stations, the Sandy Point shore crossing and the Mardan site compound, with work beginning along the 90 km underground cable route in Gippsland. A joint venture of Malaysia's Gamuda and South Korea's Samsung C&T holds the AU$994 million balance-of-works contract, covering civil, structural and electrical work including converter buildings.
The Tasmanian grid side. TasNetworks is building the North West Transmission Developments so the state's network can carry the extra power. Stage One spans 130 km between Sheffield and Burnie and is due in service by 2030; access tracks, fencing, tower foundations and substation works have already started.
Why it exists. Tasmania today relies on a single link, the 500 MW Basslink. Marinus Link is the export path for the state's "Battery of the Nation" plan, under which Hydro Tasmania envisages 1.5–3.5 GWh of new pumped hydro storage that could supply the mainland when wind and solar are short, and absorb surplus when they are abundant.
Money and approvals. Shareholders took the final investment decision in August 2025, alongside federal environmental approval. The Clean Energy Finance Corporation committed AU$3.8 billion, its largest single commitment. In September the project received Australia's first transmission and infrastructure licence under the offshore electricity infrastructure regime, described as the last federal approval needed. An updated cost-benefit analysis puts Stage 1 plus the Tasmanian network works at more than AU$5 billion.
Source: Energy-Storage.news, 9 October 2026 — https://www.energy-storage.news/tasmanias-battery-of-the-nation-plan-moves-closer-as-marinus-link-holds-sod-turn-in-australia