East Suffolk Council
Council urges local people to have their say on Sea Link
East Suffolk Council is urging local residents to get involved in the next stage of the planning process for the proposed Sea Link project.
The project, which is being developed by National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), involves the reinforcement of the electricity transmission network between Suffolk and Kent.
While part of the project comprises a 122km offshore Direct Current link, a significant amount of onshore infrastructure is proposed, with landfall between Thorpeness and Aldeburgh, onshore underground cables, connection to the transmission network via either the proposed substation at Friston or via a new substation, and a 2GW converter station proposed near Saxmundham.
The onshore infrastructure will have significant environmental, social and economic impacts, both alone and cumulatively with other nationally significant projects also being proposed in East Suffolk.
East Suffolk Council has raised specific concerns regarding the project and is committed to working constructively with NGET to achieve the best possible outcomes for communities and the local environment, if the project were to be consented and delivered.
The Secretary of State has decided that the Sea Link project will be a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP). NGET, as the developer, is therefore required to apply for consent where the final decision whether to give permission will be made by the Secretary of State through the granting of a Development Consent Order (DCO).
The application has been submitted for examination to the Planning Inspectorate, and only those registered will be able to comment during the examination period. Organisations and individuals wishing to comment must register as an Interested Party by Monday 23 June 2025.
Cllr Tom Daly, East Suffolk’s cabinet member for Energy and Climate Change, said: “Whilst attending the recent roadshow event in Saxmundham, the councillors and officers present were inundated with concerns from local residents about the impact of Sea Link and other proposed energy projects on the Suffolk coast.
“We are now approaching a significant phase of the planning process for Sea Link, and we want to ensure residents understand the proposals and their implications for the local area. Most importantly we want residents to understand how they can submit their views for consideration by the Planning Inspectorate, who will make the final decision about whether Sea Link goes ahead.
“Over the years of pre-application engagement, the Council has repeatedly called for a coordinated approach to delivering the infrastructure for Sea Link and has provided extensive responses to all consultations previously held. In all these responses, the Council has raised significant concerns that issues have not been satisfactorily addressed by NGET, including the limited amount of information shared with the Council for review and response.
“Earlier this year, we wrote to National Grid to highlight our concerns and to request that many of the issues raised were addressed prior to the submission to the Planning Inspectorate and are currently awaiting a response.
“We are now approaching the examination stage and only those organisations and individuals registered as Interested Parties will be able to submit their views to the Planning Inspectorate during this stage. Therefore, I would urge people who wish to give their views to register as an Interested Party before 23 June.”
In February 2025, East Suffolk Council wrote to the Chair and Chief Executive of National Grid to highlight the Council’s concerns about the Sea Link project ahead of the project’s planned submission to the Planning Inspectorate, and to urge NGET to engage constructively with East Suffolk Council to place the project in better stead for formal submission to the Planning Inspectorate.
To save considerable time and effort during the Examination process, the Council expressed a view that many of the issues raised would be better discussed and progressed ahead of the application being submitted to the Planning Inspectorate, and which would then assist with the drafting of the Statement of Common Ground.
This would enable the formulation of a comprehensive Development Consent Order, which would make a significant contribution to the smooth and timely delivery of the project, should development consent be granted.
The Council also stated that the Sea link project cannot, and should not, proceed with a view that identification of Sea Link as an Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) project means the project can be delivered at any cost.
The Council is supportive of the Net Zero transition and recognises the importance of projects such as Sea Link, but to date do not have the confidence that the delivery of the project as currently proposed and understood would not result in unacceptable harm to the local environment and the existing communities.
East Suffolk Council continues to call for a coordinated strategic approach to the delivery of the energy infrastructure, including a more rigorous approach to Offshore Coordination Support Scheme possibilities around coordinated offshore transmission infrastructure and alternative brownfield landfall locations that may be possible. Net Zero targets should not be used to remove these options from the discussion.
Register as an Interested Party by 11:59pm on Monday 23 June 2025.