The electrical system
*Update - January 2012 – Nation Grid give RWE npower renewables an offer for the onshore connection point for Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm*
In summer 2010, we carried out consultation with local people in East Lindsey, non-statutory groups and statutory bodies to help us to determine the most suitable location for the onshore substation and the most suitable cable route to connect the wind farm to the substation. The consultation exercise was focused in this area because National Grid gave us a contracted future connection to the electricity network in East Lindsey.
In December 2010, National Grid notified us that they were undertaking a new review of options for the onshore substation location which will consider potential options that lie outside East Lindsey. Further work will then be required before the connection strategy is developed as a basis for consultation. We decided to progress Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm as two separate packages:
| Package 1: The wind farm site itself and all elements within its offshore site boundary (including wind turbines, meteorological masts, offshore substations and ‘intra-array’ cables linking the wind turbines with the offshore substation). |
| Package 2: The electrical system (including the onshore substation and cable route, and the offshore export cable route). |
The electrical system (package 2) will be the subject of a separate consultation and planning application in the future.
Update January 2012
We have worked with National Grid over the course of the last year on the strategic review. National Grid have now issued us an offer for connection of the wind farm to the existing electricity transmission network at a substation at Bicker Fen, south west of Boston, Lincolnshire. This revised offer assumes that there would be an underground direct current (DC) connection installed between Bicker Fen substation and Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm.
What happens next
We will work alongside National Grid and undertake further technical and design studies to understand what the electrical system will comprise. It is likely to include an electrical substation in the vicinity of Bicker Fen and cables which link the wind farm to the substation.
We will also commence environmental and engineering studies to find the best potential sites and routes for the electrical infrastructure. We will consult with statutory bodies such as the Environment Agency, Natural England and relevant local authority departments. Our assessments will consider environmental factors such as flood risk, noise and landscape as well as other factors such as land ownership and existing land use. It is anticipated that the findings of these studies will be available during 2012.
Once we have evaluated the different options, we will carry out consultation with public bodies and local communities. We will then use the results of this consultation to inform our final planning application for the electrical system (Package 2). This application will be separate to that of the offshore wind farm (Package 1).
Triton Knoll Offshore Wind Farm’s proposed onshore connection location. © British Crown and SeaZone Solutions Limited. All rights reserved. Data Licence 052003.002
