Where are offshore windfarms and where will they be?
Development in Norfolk/Suffolk, development area.
Lowestoft Area
Following the collapse of the fishing industry, people in Lowestoft
have turned their attention to wind farms and renewable energy as
the way forward and are promoting the town as a national centre
for the industry.
Plans for a £5m centre of excellence to support East Anglia's
offshore wind farms were announced in May. The next stage for the
project is to finalise details for the centre that is likely to
be built on a site at Ness Point - Britain's most easterly point.
Suffolk County Council has announced a £1.1m scheme to link
Lowestoft businesses with wind energy companies across Europe, while
the Suffolk Development agency has launched a brochure campaign
across the country describing Lowestoft as Britain's Leading Edge
for wind farms.
The brochure outlines everything happening in the town and hails
the area and infrastructure as the best in the country for wind
farms and renewable energy. The town also has the added advantage
of a large harbour, big enough to cope with large cranes and turbine-based
construction equipment.
Engineering firm SLP, which was involved in the construction of
the 30 turbines at Scroby Sands, off the Yarmouth coast, is also
planning one of the country's biggest single wind turbines off Ness
Point.
The turbine would measure 150m from base to blade tip and provide
power for 2200 homes in Lowestoft. However, since planning permission
was gained in April 2002, work still had not been started on the
turbine in Summer 2004, as the company negotiated with energy firms
It is not known how many jobs will be created by the activities
in Lowestoft, but estimates range from several hundreds to several
thousands.
Centre for excellence
Plans for a £5m centre of excellence to support East Anglia's
offshore wind farms were announced in May 2004.
The centre of excellence is likely to be built on a site at Ness
Point – Britain's most easterly point – and could be
up and running in as little as two years. It aims to establish the
town as a national focal point for the industry and hopes to attract
research and development companies to the coast.
The centre would also provide jobs and business support as well
as office and exhibition space for new and expanding wind farm firms.
The centre is funded by money from The East of England Development
Agency and partners including, Cambridge University, the Government
office for the Eastern Region and the Association of British Ports. |