We are encouraging residents and businesses to give their views to the public consultation on the development proposal for the Rampion 2 Wind Farm. The consultation closes on 11 April.
Developers RWE reopened the consultation from 7 February 2022 to enable more people to give their views. RWE is the UK's second largest power producer and third largest renewable generator in the UK supplying around 12% of UK electricity.
The proposal is for up to 116 new wind turbines to add to the existing Rampion Wind Farm off the coast of Brighton & Hove, East and West Sussex. They will be between 1.5 and 2.3 times the height of the existing Rampion turbines.
The new turbines will be connected to onshore cables at one location - Climping Beach in West Sussex. From there cables will link to a new substation near Bolney.
RWE predict that the project could generate clean, green electricity for the equivalent of over 1 million homes and offset around 1.8 million tonnes of CO2 every year, in addition to what the existing wind farm already provides.
The council submitted a detailed technical response to the formal public consultation last year, expressing support for renewable energy schemes and pushing for the project to make a clear contribution to our local energy needs, economy and jobs..
Council leader Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “It’s really important that both residents and businesses respond to the proposals from Rampion, that seek to expand the wind farm off the Sussex coastline.
“We are supporting the expansion of the Rampion wind farm because climate change continues to cause devastating damage across the globe and our reliance on imported dirty fossil fuels such as gas and oil has only been proven more precarious.
“I’m clear that improving our access to sustainable, renewable energy is a key way we can reduce our dependency on the dirty fossil fuels that are accelerating the climate crisis.
Councillor Mac Cafferty added: “The council has pledged to take ambitious action to become a carbon neutral city by 2030 however we can’t achieve this alone. We have to work in partnership to develop more sources of green energy. Our consultation response to the Rampion 2 proposal expresses our support for the wind farm - and we have made suggestions that we believe will strengthen the proposal in terms of its impact on our local environment.
“We have also been clear that we are looking for the developers to take more action to ensure that our local economy benefits from the scheme, both during the construction period and once the wind farm is operational, and that Rampion 2 makes a greater contribution to local infrastructure and jobs.
“I urge both residents and businesses to give their views on this important proposal that could accelerate renewable energy in our region.”
You can take part in the consultation through the Rampion 2 website.