E.ON

Plans for a giant wind farm off the coast near Brighton have taken an important step forward this week with confirmation developer E.ON has resubmitted its initial planning application for the project.

The energy giant, which was granted the rights to the Hastings Round 3 offshore wind development zone back in 2010, withdrew its first application for a development consent order (DCO) late last year after it emerged it had failed to consult neighbouring councils in Sevenoaks and Surrey.

However, the company yesterday confirmed the oversight has been corrected and it has now resubmitted its DCO application to the Planning Inspectorate for the proposed 700MW Rampion Offshore Wind Farm Project.

“A 28-day period will now follow for the Planning Inspectorate to decide whether to accept the application,” a spokeswoman for the company told BusinessGreen. “If accepted, we will publish notices in local and national newspapers setting out where the community can view our proposals and how to register their opinions with the Planning Inspectorate. A final decision on whether consent will be granted will not be made until summer 2014.”

The news represents another step forward for the fleet of giant offshore wind projects, which are expected to come online during the second half of the decade.

The Rampion project represents one of the smaller Round 3 developments, but should still result in 700MW of capacity delivering up to 2,100GWh of electricity each year – enough for an estimated 450,000 homes.

The development zone covers 167 square kilometres and lies between 13km and 23km off the Sussex coast in waters that are between 19 and 50 metres deep.

In other wind industry news, UK infrastructure investor John Laing announced that it has reached financial close on its first overseas wind farm, completing a deal that makes it the 100 per cent investor in the Svartvallsberget Wind Farm in Sweden.

The 20MW project is expected to come online early next year and will provide power for around 12,500 homes while reducing emissions by an estimated 21,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

“We are delighted to have made our first overseas acquisition in the onshore wind market as it represents a significant milestone in the development of the John Laing business in the renewable energy sector,” said Ross McArthur, head of renewable energy for John Laing.