UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the government is drawing up plans to modify the way offshore wind farms connect to the grid.
Johnson said the government is “in the process of developing the necessary regulatory changes” to enable projects to join the grid in a more co-ordinated way.
BEIS is currently leading a review into the current OFTO system, which connects projects to shore via individual radial links.
The remarks came during Prime Minister’s Questions on Wednesday after the Conservative MP for North Norfolk Duncan Baker sought clarity on the progress of the review.
Baker said a judicial review that quashed consent for Vattenfall’s 1.8GW Norfolk Vanguard project last week on the grounds that cumulative onshore impacts had not been considered, urgently showed the need for a new approach.
“If the UK is to become the Saudi Arabia of wind power…then the current piecemeal and environmentally damaging method of connecting projects to the grid is holding us back,” Baker said.
“We need legal and regulatory reform now”.
Vattenfall said it is encouraging that the Prime Minister has said the Government is developing the necessary regulatory changes.
“Vattenfall has long been calling for better grid coordination for offshore wind infrastructure,” a spokesperson said.
The developer warned that technological and regulatory constraints make it unlikely large-scale co-ordination will be rolled out in this decade.
“We can’t postpone investment in offshore wind development – with all the jobs and community benefits that investment provides – for that long. It’s simply not an option in the fight against climate change, nor for the people of this country who have been promised a green industrial revolution.”
The spokesperson added that even with greater coordination the UK will still need to build new onshore substations and either underground cables or overhead pylons to transport electricity from projects.