A lead Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) consultant will be appointed to the NISA project in early February 2021. These consultants will assist us in conducting surveys and studies into the local area to inform our preliminary design layout. This information will inform the next stage of our project design. This will include our consideration of, not only the proposed turbines, but also locations for a substation, the route of the cable from the wind farm to the electricity grid and any other elements we will have to consider.
Currently, we are commencing the process of engaging with the local authority, local communities, other relevant stakeholders and continuing our consultation with the fishing industry. This engagement will continue and develop as the project progresses and along with engagement with individuals and groups, it will include the development of a virtual consultation room which will detail further project information and photomontages of the proposed development. If you would like any information at any stage, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.
Having adopted the concept of the Pod approach to the proposed wind farm layout (as outlined HERE), further studies and investigations will be required in order to inform the design team in relation to how individual turbine locations might work and in terms of how these pods might collectively work to form the final design of the NISA proposal. Investigations that will be required will include foreshore site investigations, environmental surveys, the location of existing subsea infrastructure and any other subsea obstructions along with other relevant studies.
NISA will require a new substation to be built to deliver the electricity generated by the wind farm to the national grid. As this project is still at an early stage in its development process, proposed locations to be considered for this facility have yet to be identified. Over the coming months, we will be working to establish how a substation location would work best in terms of both the local context and for the project being proposed. We will provide information on any location being considered once this becomes available.
We are currently looking at all the possibilities for a cable route to connect the offshore wind farm to the proposed grid connection point at Belcamp.
In terms of the offshore aspect of this grid route, we will be working to develop our understanding of the offshore environment. We will be undertaking surveys and assessments, and engaging widely with other offshore users and environmental bodies before any offshore grid routes are proposed.
In terms of the onshore aspect, we will be undertaking studies at the landfall, to understand what is technically feasible. The information gathered through this process will help us to further refine our proposal, ensuring that we select the most appropriate route and landfall point that best considers the local environment and community interests. More information, including the preferred substation option, will be required before we are in a position to propose a connection route.
