Concerns of the East can't be overlooked when new offshore wind farms are built
That's the message from one local MP who is one of many looking to make new grids more cost effective and environmentally friendly.
A Norfolk MP is asking the government how they would ensure new off-shore wind farms in the East are cost effective and environmentally friendly.
Jerome Mayhew is one of many East Anglian MPs part of the recently formed Off Shore Electricity Grid Task Force, that wants to make sure the East isn't adversely affected by the building of this new infrastructure.
The MP for Broadlands told us that building these grids sooner will have a range of positive effects: "What I want is to bring forward the date of 2030 to as close to 2025 as we can get, because we want to minimise the social and environmental damage created by these individual cable corridors going across Norfolk and Suffolk."
He went on to say that the voice and concerns of local people mustn't be drowned up in this debate: "We need to make sure that the views of local residents in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex are also factored in. That's why we're keeping the pressure up on the Government to make sure there is a balance, industry on one side saying we want more time and we're saying no, you need to go as quickly as possible. As every cable corridor adversely affects communities and the natural environment."
Mr Mayhew also told us saving money on this project, where possible, is particularly important: "If we install this system by 2025 there are six billion pounds of savings in both capital expenditure and also operating savings between now and 2050 and that's money that would come off people's electricity bills. There's lots of money and lots of reasons to suggest that we should speed this up."
He concluded by saying its a no-brainer for the East to harness the power of the elements: "We have a lot of off-shore wind off the coast of Norfolk and Suffolk, and we're going to have a lot more. Nation-wide we have about 10 and a half gigawatts of off-shore wind here in 2021. By 2030, we are going to increase that by another thirty to forty gigawatts. To put this into perspective, a large nuclear power station generates about 3.2 gigawatts."