A Government energy minister heard calls for an offshore grid to be created to take cables from wind farms during the second day of his visit to Suffolk.
Andrew Bowie, a minister of state at the new Department for Energy and Net Zero, met campaigners and Suffolk Coastal MP Therese Coffey in Aldeburgh to discuss possible alternatives to the current plans for onshore cabling.
READ MORE: Energy minister Andrew Bowie in visit to Suffolk projects
Fiona Gilmore, founder of Suffolk Energy Action Solutions (SEAS), which is opposed to the onshore cables, proposed using brownfield land at Bradwell in Essex to accommodate the cables, instead of current plans to route them across east Suffolk countryside.
The Eurolink and Sea Link cables are set to take power generated by the East Anglia ONE and TWO wind farms to Britain and the Netherlands.
READ MORE: Aldeburgh news
As part of the project, 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.
Fiona said: "Andrew Bowie was surprisingly open to our proposals, listening hard.
"We had good news to share including a new study examining Bradwell as a possible candidate for a super energy hub, or as National Grid has recently named them 'capacity hubs'.
"Our Bradwell analysis concludes that Bradwell is a highly attractive location given that it is a brownfield site in need of regeneration.
"The build cost is within 10% differential to Friston. It could be even cheaper if the need for Sealink was obviated."
READ MORE: Suffolk news
Ms Coffey said there were now plans to route another subsea cable- known as Nautilus - which will take power to the UK and Belgium, via the Isle of Grain in Kent, possibly using an offshore grid.
She added: "I’m pleased that the minister was in listening mode and he intimated that there may be future changes as part of the ongoing Offshore Coordination Support Scheme work.
"For example, I’m pleased that it is now likely that the Nautilus project will be connected via the Isle of Grain, potentially from a modular offshore grid.
"The same needs to be done for other connections and I will continue to press the case on this.”
On Wednesday, Mr Bowie visited Sizewell and discussed the Sizewell C nuclear power station project with Stop Sizewell C campaigners at Theberton and Eastbridge Village Hall.
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