Ralph Fiennes calls for offshore Suffolk energy hubs
He's against plans to build "an energy hub" near Aldeburgh, which would bring in electricity from wind farms
Suffolk born actor Ralph Fiennes has spoken about his campaign against plans to build "an energy hub" near Aldeburgh in Suffolk which brings in electricity from wind farms.
"We believe that this will have a devastating negative impact on local communities, farming, fishing, tourism, when it can be done better, which is offshore hubs," Fiennes, known for playing Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter films and M in the James Bond series, explained.
"This is a long-term legacy for our country. This is the infrastructure going into the future, it might be more expensive in the short, in the mid-term, we're convinced it's not. But this is really vital that we get this right.
"And the solution, the implementation of this structure is destructive and I've been looking, I've been excited to look at what the Belgians and the Danes are doing by these offshore infrastructures, which are then ecologically friendly, and they take their cabling onshore to a brownfield site, which is critical.
"This is a greenfield site proposal."
He said that the proposals had wider implications as building "new clean energy infrastructure is really, really vital" and called the current proposals a "disaster".
ScottishPower Renewables (SPR) has previously defended the plans.
SPR said it would help climate change efforts and it is trying to protect "the local environment and minimise the potential onshore impacts of the construction programme".
A spokesperson for National Grid said there "is no fully offshore solution to connect offshore wind to the grid in any country, and building new network to connect cheaper, cleaner electricity is the only way to bring energy bills down long term".
"Our role is to future proof the grid for years to come by carefully developing proposals with environmental and biodiversity considerations that represent value for money for all consumers, facilitating the transition to a clean, fair, and affordable energy future," they added.