Changes are being made to controversial plans to route electricity cables from offshore wind farms across east Suffolk following public consultations attended by more than 1,500 people.
A National Grid spokesperson said further work was taking place to "develop the proposals" following feedback at the events to discuss the Eurolink and Sea Link cables, which will take power generated by the proposed East Anglia ONE and TWO offshore wind farms to Kent and the Netherlands.
Two eight-acre substations are being planned at Friston which will take some of the cabling from the two wind farms, stoking fears about the impact on the village and surrounding countryside.
Campaign group Substation Action Save East Suffolk (SASES) has been fighting the plans for the Friston substations.
Eurolink refers to the subsea cable that will harness the increasing volumes of wind power generated in the North Sea and deliver the electricity to grids in Britain and the Netherlands.
Sea Link aims to add additional capacity to the electricity network in Suffolk and Kent, enabling low-carbon and green energy to power local homes and businesses and be transported around the country.
The spokesperson added: “Over 1,500 people attended the non-statutory consultation events for EuroLink and Sea Link from October to December, through in-person events and webinars, with further engagement via email and post.
“The project teams are now carefully considering the feedback received and undertaking further work to develop the proposals. There will be a further opportunity to provide feedback on these refined proposals in 2023.”
The eight-week consultations began at the end of October and included events in Aldeburgh, Reydon and Dunwich, among other places.
Scottish Power Renewables is developing the wind farms which were granted development consent by the Government in March, but are currently subject to a judicial review.
East Anglia ONE will be located 36km off the coast of Lowestoft and will provide 67 turbines, generators and associated infrastructure with a capacity of up to 800MW.
East Anglian TWO will be 37km off Lowestoft and will provide 75 turbines, generators and associated infrastructure with a capacity of 900MW.
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