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The UK government has decided to extend the decision deadline for the proposed 1.2 GW Rampion 2 offshore wind extension project, stating that additional information is required. Under the Planning Act 2008, the Secretary of State was required to reach a decision on the Rampion 2 offshore wind extension project by 6 February 2025. However, Michael Shanks, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Energy, decided to grant an extension and set a new deadline of 4 April 2025, to allow time to request further information. The new deadline for the application does not affect the decision on whether to approve or reject the development consent, according to Shanks. In August 2024, the UK Planning Inspectorate completed the examination period following public consultation and review of RWE’s application for the development consent order (DCO). After this, a three-month period started to submit a recommendation to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband, who had until 6 February to decide whether to approve or reject the DCO. Rampion 2 is being developed as an extension to the existing Rampion offshore wind farm, off the Sussex coast. If consented, the project could move into construction in 2026 or early 2027, and the wind farm would then be fully operational before the end of the decade. The initial plan for Rampion 2 was for the project to have 116 wind turbines, but following statutory consultation held in 2021 and 2022 and feedback on visual effects and shipping from key stakeholders, the developer reduced the size of the array site and the number of turbines to 90. The project would connect to the national electricity transmission network through underground cables that would run from a landfall at Climping, West Sussex, to the existing National Grid electricity substation at Bolney in Mid-Sussex via the new dedicated Rampion 2 ‘satellite’ substation at Oakendene. Rampion 2 has an agreement for 1,200 MW to connect to the Bolney substation in 2028/2029, according to RWE. Rampion 2 is a joint venture between RWE Renewables, the majority shareholder (50.1 per cent), and its partners, a Macquarie-led consortium (25 per cent), and Enbridge (24.9 per cent). |
