East Anglia Three, part of the East Anglia Hub, has a 1.4GW capacity, enough to power around 1.3 million homes and a significant portion of the government’s target of 50GW of offshore wind by 2030. The £6.5bn East Anglia Hub – comprising East Anglia One North, Two and Three – will deliver around 3GW of power in total.
The initial focus of the EA Three construction programme will be on the onshore converter station at Bramford in Suffolk – in partnership with Siemens Energy and Aker Solutions – and along the cable route, working with contractor NKT.
East Anglia Three will follow the same cable corridor as East Anglia One – ScottishPower’s flagship offshore windfarm – meaning there is no need to create new cable trenches.
Work on the construction access road at the onshore converter station has started and drainage and earthworks are expected to be completed by the end of the year. Highway works for the three construction compounds along the cable corridor are also under way, with three access roads and one compound expected to be complete by the end of August.
Mark Pilling, Siemens Energy vice president for high voltage grids, said: “The project represents a significant step towards delivering on the UK’s energy transition and progressing to a net zero future.”
ScottishPower Renewables managing director Ross Ovens said: “Net zero climate change ambitions, energy security and the rising cost of living all point to the need for speed in delivering a greener, more self-sufficient future. Starting construction on EA Three takes us one step closer to that reality and it’s great to see that happen so soon after the project’s success in allocation round four. It’s a really exciting time for us and for the east of England.”
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