Suffolk County Council urge residents to share concerns in Sea Link consultation

Suffolk County Council is urging residents to share their concerns over Sea Link as the consultation opens.

Plans would see the construction of an offshore two-gigawatt subsea high-voltage electricity connection between Suffolk and Kent.

National Grid’s project would also include an onshore connection from the existing transmission network via the controversial Friston Substation.

Concerns over energy development in Suffolk have been raised recently following the slew of developments in projects such as Sizewell C, Nautilus, and LionLink.

Residents have been vocal about the damage these plans could have on the county.

Cllr Richard Rout, the council’s deputy leader and cabinet member for finance and environment, said SCC would ‘not stand for the bare minimum mitigations’ which ‘show little consideration for local communities’.

He said: “The co-ordination of cabling, landing points and construction is essential – anything short of this, we find unacceptable.

“The impact of the Sea Link proposals on local communities should not be underestimated.”

Although the last decision would be taken by the Secretary of State, the council is urging people to share their concerns as the SCC prepares its response.

Adrian Pierssene, Project Director for Sea Link, said the project was ‘essential’ in achieving net zero targets by 2050 and welcomed the views and feedback of residents.

During the eight-week period, residents will also be able to attend in-person events and tune into online webinars — a full schedule is available on National Grid’s website.

To have your say, you can visit the website here.

The statutory consultation will run until December 18.