National Grid - NGV Nautilus
NGV Nautilus - Proposed interconnector linking UK & Belgium grids
DEVELOPER – NATIONAL GRID VENTURES (NGV)
STATUS – NON STATUTORY CONSULTATION
National Grid Ventures have registered this proposal with the Planning Inspectorate and NGV commenced a preliminary round of public consultation between 14th September & 26th October 2021.
Responses to consultation
SASES
"...SASES regards this consultation as premature as it is based on the assumption that the National Grid NSIP at Friston and the associated Scottish Power NSIPs for EA1N and EA2 (together the “Scottish Power NSIPs”) are consented. Those decisions have yet to be made. Furthermore the applications for these projects are flawed not least as there was a failure to carry out a cumulative impact assessment of the Scottish Power NSIPs given that the National Grid NSIP will be a connection hub for a number of offshore projects including Nautilus and Eurolink.
You can assume that NGVs proposals for Nautilus and Eurolink are strongly opposed by SASES and will be vigorously challenged."
SASES believe the key issue consistently unaddressed is that of ‘cumulative impact’, both individual developers and National Grid – Network Operator, consistently fail to acknowledge and address the obvious issues.
Where is the cumulative impact assessment?
SASES full response to NGV Nautilus consultation is available here >>
Suffolk County Council
"...Suffolk County Council would not be minded to support additional energy infrastructure development in this sensitive location. Consequently, Suffolk County Council considers that NGV needs to revisit entirely its approach for connection to the National Grid, and consequently should not have constrained its current proposals only to considering options for converter stations within 5 km of Friston. With a wider area of search, there would also be a wider range of potential locations for landfall and cable routeing choices."
Suffolk County Council have confirmed that they object to the current National Grid Ventures proposal, this is in line with SCCs objection to Scottish Power Renewables onshore proposals for EA1N & EA2 offshore wind farms which seek to locate and build a substation complex north of Friston village.
National Grid Ventures consultation plans to connect Nautilus via a Friston connection point, under a presumption DCO’s will be granted to Scottish Power and a National Grid substation here.
Suffolk County Councils full response to Nautilus consultation is available here >>
East Suffolk Council
"...Based on the information available, ESC objects to the lack of demonstratable coordination and is not able to support the landfall, cable route and converter station options presented.."
The East Suffolk district authority submitted a lengthy response to the initial round of public consultations, ESC highlights the short comings of the initial consultation. ESC highlights many reasons why the chosen locations for cable landing, cable routing and identified convertor station sites would be too disruptive locally and too destructive given further damage these proposals would have in and around the coastal AONB.
East Suffolk Authority – Response to Nautilus consultation is available here >>
MP Therese Coffey
"...Recognising the cumulative impact of this and other pending projects, the long-term capacity of Bradwell as an integrated Wind Energy Hub has significantly greater potential than the Friston site. It is closer to London and on the coast thus negating the need for cable corridors to be dug and re-dug with every future wind farm project attempting to connect to the Grid. It is a brownfield site and in need of development. I would urge National Grid to seriously consider this and for the developer to demand a new connection site.
...these entire proposals are predicated on the connection at Friston, I do not wish to support any of the associated infrastructure, which promotes that connection."
Therese Coffey continues to propose urgent requirement to repurpose an existing brownfield site to connect multiple projects.
Therese Coffeys full response to Nautilus consultation is available here >>