The first phase of works to construct a £2.4bn submarine power cable linking Kent with Germany have been completed to schedule.

Around 450 miles of land and underwater cables will form an “invisible highway” allowing up to 1.4 gigawatts of electricity to move in either direction between the Isle of Grain, on Medway’s Hoo Peninsula, and Wilhelmshaven, a coastal town in Lower Saxony.

Once complete by the end of the decade it will provide enough energy to power 1.5 million homes over the life of the project – roughly equal to the number of people currently living in the county.

New converter stations on the Isle of Grain and the German landfall location will be connected by subsea cables – known as interconnectors – travelling through British, Dutch and German waters.

Work on the initial phases of the NeuConnect interconnector project began in the UK this summer.

Last week Italian contractor Prysmian installed the last of three underground ducts with an overall length of more than 1.2km.

The next phase will see the subsea cables bought on-land and is estimated to take a total of 12,000 man hours to complete. Onshore and offshore cabling work will then begin in 2024.

Meanwhile, German firm Siemens Energy is in the process of constructing two converter terminals at either end of the interconnector which will convert the alternative current of the grids into direct current to reduce energy loss.

The platform has been completed, allowing connection to the main access road and the first of two attenuation ponds has been excavated with the other on the way.

Construction of the converter station itself will begin next year.

The project will help boost energy security as Europe seeks alternatives to Russian pipeline gas following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

The first construction milestone comes after a new agreement was signed between the UK and Germany earlier this month in London committing both to advancing affordable and clean energy for consumers as part of their Net Zero pledges.

NeuConnect CEO Arnaud Grévoz said: “We have continued to make good progress since major construction work started over the summer, and these new aerial photos offer an early glimpse of the NeuConnect project beginning to take shape.

“With works well underway in Germany and the UK, the delivery of this vital new energy link remains firmly on track.”

NeuConnect will be one of the world’s largest interconnector projects. Interconnectors are high-voltage cables that connect the electricity systems of neighbouring countries.

It is a fully privately funded project being developed by France’s Meridiam, Germany’s Allianz Capital Partners and Japan’s Kansai Electric Power.

The project is expected to be operational by 2028.