30/03/2016 (Agence Europe) - EIB to lend £500 million to bring improvements to electricity network in Scotland. The European Investment Bank (EIB) agreed on Wednesday 30 March to provide £500 million (€636 million) to support a major reinforcement of the electricity transmission network in the north of Scotland to improve connections between wind, wave and tidal renewable energy schemes and the national power network. The Caithness-Moray power link will help secure the supply of electricity in the Highlands and beyond for generations to come and once operational the new transmission link will supply equivalent electricity to meet the needs of around 2 million Scottish residents. The new investment represents the largest investment in the electricity network in the north of Scotland for 60 years and includes a new 1200 megawatt subsea cable and associated onshore infrastructure works which are expected to provide 600 jobs during the construction phase. The long-term EIB loan will support nearly £1.2 billion of overall investment in the electricity transmission network in the north of Scotland by Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission plc. (EH)