Corio and TotalEnergies have submitted a Project Scoping Report to the Planning Inspectorate for a 1500MW offshore wind project off the coast of Lincolnshire, England.
Following the recent approval by the UK government of the Crown Estate’s Habitats Regulations Assessment process, the Outer Dowsing development team has now submitted the scoping report, forming part of an extensive consultation exercise with stakeholders.
Located 54 km off Lincolnshire, Outer Dowsing will be one of the UK’s largest offshore wind farms upon completion.
The project is being jointly developed by Corio, a wholly-owned Green Investment Group (Macquarie) portfolio company, and TotalEnergies.
The Planning Inspectorate will now consult widely with statutory stakeholders on the technical proposals before providing a formal Scoping Opinion.
The views obtained during the scoping process, together with ongoing surveys, will be used to guide the design and layout of the wind farm and its associated infrastructure, ahead of formal submission for development consent, which is anticipated in late 2023.
Chris Jenner, Development Manager for Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind, said: “We’re delighted to reach this important first stage in the planning process and look forward to continuing to work with local communities and other stakeholders as we develop the project plan for Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind.”
The Outer Dowsing development team is now organising a number of public information events in autumn 2022 to seek views from the local community on the project proposals.
On 19 July 2022, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy gave approval for over 8GW of offshore wind to move into the next step in the seabed licencing process.
In April, following the completion of a Habitats Regulations Assessment – an assessment of the potential impacts on the most valuable environmental habitats in the UK – the Crown Estate gave notice to the UK and Welsh Governments of its intent to proceed with the Offshore Wind Leasing Round 4 plan on the basis of a “derogation”.
The Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has now provided agreement that the Crown Estate can proceed with the plan, and the Welsh Government has not raised any objections to the notice.
Outer Dowsing Offshore Wind can now progress to enter into an Agreement for Lease with the Crown Estate.