Samantha Harrison, a former UK government adviser, has been appointed chief operating officer (COO) of Xlinks Limited, a renewable energy company working on a groundbreaking project to link the UK and Morocco via an electricity transmission system.
In late September, the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments (ACOBA) reviewed Ms Harrison’s appointment and concluded that there was minimal risk of conflict with her previous government roles.
Ms. Harrison previously served as a senior advisor to the Department of Health and Social Care and as acting permanent secretary and chief operating officer at 10 Downing Street.
The committee noted that she had no previous involvement with Xlinks or the energy sector during her time in government.
As COO, Ms. Harrison will be responsible for strategic people, security, culture, technology, digital data and government and stakeholder relations at Xlinks.
She confirmed that she will have no direct contact with the government in her role and that any such contact will be managed by another employee to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
Xlinks is leading the ambitious Morocco-UK energy project, which aims to deliver renewable energy from Morocco to the UK using a 4,000-km undersea cable.
The project will generate electricity from solar and wind sources in Morocco, complemented by a large battery storage facility.
Once completed, it is expected to supply 8 per cent of Britain’s electricity needs, powering up to seven million homes.
The company has applied to the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to be designated as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure project and to secure a contract for difference to support the project. If approved, the contract could be worth billions of dollars, making it potentially the largest electricity generation asset in the UK’s electricity supply system.
RT/Sf/fss/gik/APA