Campaigners urge rethink on substation plan

Fiona Gilmore is from Offshore4sure and has spoken up about the pylon scheme

A campaign group opposed to the building of electricity substations in Suffolk is calling on the government to pause the scheme and rethink the strategy.

In a document launched at the Labour Party conference, Offshore4sure argued a pause of a few months would lead to more appropriate sites being chosen and greater use of offshore cabling.

National Grid said by delaying the projects, greener energy and greater energy security would also be delayed.

The LionLink and Sea Link offshore wind projects are due to see a converter station built on the outskirts of Saxmundham and a substation built at the village of Friston.

Energy is one of the big topics at this year's conference in Liverpool, with everyone agreeing that more renewable power needed to be delivered quickly.

Fiona Gilmore, from Offshore4sure, told a fringe meeting that the current proposals at Saxmundham and Friston were "piecemeal, fragmented and don't make sense".

She said the creation of GB Energy, which will oversee how power is delivered, was an ideal moment to rethink the strategy.

Offshore4sure campaigners have been at the Labour conference in Liverpool

"What we need to do is take a pause, think strategically and then find the right brownfield sites closer to London and demand," Ms Gilmore said.

"We can then start to build subsea cables and looking at offshore platforms to take our wind energy and keep it offshore for as long as possible."

Ms Gilmore said technology had changed since the proposals were first made and that offshore technology was now much cheaper.

She said the energy industry was "entrenched in old thinking" and not prepared to seriously consider alternatives.

"Until the government changes the incentive schemes and changes the investment schemes for developers, they will not be motivated to switch to an offshore grid. It needs government action to change that," she added.

It comes days after Energy Secretary Ed Miliband described opponents of energy infrastructure as "blockers, disrupters and obstructionists".

The spokesperson for National Grid said: "There are no suitable brownfield sites in East Suffolk to build the converter stations needed for LionLink and Sea Link. We are working to minimise the disruption for local communities by proposing to co-locate the converter stations for each project on the same site.

"Delaying these projects would delay a boost to energy security, and crucially, a delay to homes and businesses across East Anglia and beyond accessing greener and more affordable sources of energy.

"If there were cheaper and faster ways of delivering these projects, we would be proposing them."