One of the world’s largest planned offshore wind complexes cleared a major potential hurdle when a UK judge dismissed a legal challenge to a large chunk of Iberdrola’s £6.5bn ($8.5bn) East Anglia Hub – but campaigners opposing the scheme vowed “we won’t give up”.
A judge at the High Court in London rejected a judicial review against UK government consent for the onshore infrastructure of the East Anglia 1 North and East Anglia 2 projects that form about half of the 3GW East Anglia Hub planned in the North Sea by ScottishPower Renewables, Iberdrola’s UK subsidiary.
Fiona Gilmore, one of the campaigners for Suffolk Energy Action Solutions (SEAS), the group that lodged the judicial review proceedings, confirmed the outcome to Recharge but said “that does not mean we’re giving up”.
“We are assessing the judgment over the next few days and will be deciding on next action shortly.
“We are disappointed, naturally that our application for judicial review was dismissed,” Gilmore said.
SEAS claims it is not opposed to offshore wind but rather the “catastrophic” impact of multiple onshore transmission projects, and its campaign has been publicly supported by Hollywood star Ralph Fiennes – who recorded a YouTube video on the issue – and other celebrities with links to the county of Suffolk.
A ScottishPower Renewables spokesperson said: "We note the decision regarding our East Anglia 1 North and East Anglia 2 offshore wind farms and remain committed to delivering these critical infrastructure projects as quickly as possible to achieve a cleaner and greener future for us all.
"Our wind farms will not only help bring more homegrown green electricity on to the grid, but will deliver billions of pounds of investment and support thousands of jobs in the East of England and across the UK, creating a bright future for the region and a positive legacy for years to come."
The action was one of the highest profile by campaigners on the east of England coast claiming that the massive development offshore is causing serious environmental damage on land, accompanied by calls for a change of approach from the point-to-point transmission links from wind farm to shore that have dominated UK development to date.
For their part, developers have warned that without a speedier planning process, the sector will be hard-pressed to meet the recently increased target.
The UK government has pledged to slash consenting times to reduce a timescale that can currently see projects needing a decade to get through the process.
