Projects

A new floating offshore wind farm in Pembrokeshire

Our role

• We were appointed by BlueGem Wind (a JV between Simply Blue Energy and Total) to provide planning consultancy services to support its 96MW Erebus demonstration project off the Pembrokeshire coast, which is the first-ever consent application for a Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW) project in Welsh waters. Erebus will be the first floating wind farm in the Celtic Sea and, when complete in 2027, will be one of the largest floating wind farms in Europe.
• Since our appointment in 2020, our Planning team has provided a range of services to Blue Gem Wind:
• Strategic planning advice in relation to the routing and application envelope for the on-shore cable corridor from landfall to grid connection;
• Strategic planning and consenting advice in relation to the consenting application process and other consenting regimes for a project of this nature and scale;
• Advice in relation to the submission requirements for the consent application;
• Advice on community consultation requirements for proposals of  this scale;
• Preparation of a detailed Planning Statement, which assessed the proposals against the relevant national and local planning policy/legislation;
• Input in to and review of the Section 36 application cover letter;
• Input into structure and content of the Planning Policy and Legislation Chapter of the Environmental Statement;
• Review of the Planning Policy and Legislation Chapter of the Environmental Statement; and
• Preparation and submission of a planning application for a temporary Meteorological Mast in Angle, Pembrokeshire, which allows BlueGem Wind to collect wind and weather data to assess the capacity of the Celtic Sea to deliver wind energy projects and inform opportunities for and the feasibility of future offshore wind projects in the Pembrokeshire Coast area.
• Preparation of a separate full planning application (TCPA) to enable a connection to the national grid.

Image courtesy of Principle Power