Early engagement with technical stakeholders and local authorities started.
The Project was launched as North Falls Offshore Wind Farm in 2020.
The Agreement for Lease between North Falls and The Crown Estate was signed in Autumn 2020. An Agreement for Lease generally grants a developer an option over an area of seabed.
The Project asked the Secretary of State, via the Planning Inspectorate, to adopt a Scoping Opinion regarding the Project and notified the Secretary of State, also via the Planning Inspectorate, of its intention to provide an Environmental Statement. Both of these requirements were fulfilled on 16 July 2021.
The Project’s stage 1 (introductory) consultation took place between October and December 2021. This consultation focused on early proposals for the Project. This consultation was not carried out to fulfil the requirements of the Planning Act, but to introduce the Project to local communities and stakeholders to inform its subsequent development.
At this stage of the Project’s development, detailed environmental information was still being developed and not yet available to share. The Project did however share outline information regarding the Project rationale and initial works being undertaken.
The stage 1 (introductory) consultation web pages can be viewed here. This information was accurate at the time of publishing. Visit our current status page for up-to-date information and register for Project updates here.
A detailed summary of the stage 1 (introductory) consultation can be found on pages 57 to 63 of the Project’s Consultation Report.
The Project held a further non-statutory consultation between October and December 2022. This consultation was designed to give stakeholders and local people the opportunity to provide feedback on how the Project’s proposals had progressed since the conclusion of the stage 1 (introductory) consultation.
At this stage of the Project’s development, detailed environmental information was still being understood and refined. The Project shared outline information regarding the Project rationale and initial works being undertaken, as well as initial information on landfall, cable route and onshore infrastructure, noting that future consultation would provide more detail.
The stage 2 (non-statutory) consultation web pages can be viewed here.
A detailed summary of stage 2 (non-statutory) consultation can be found on pages 63 to 71 of the Project’s Consultation Report
The Project held its statutory consultation between May and July 2023. This consultation included more detailed proposals than at stage 1 and stage 2 consultations and preliminary environmental information was published which explained the Project’s potential benefits and impacts.
The Project originally comprised two offshore array areas totalling approximately 150km2, but after stage 3 (statutory) consultation the decision was made to remove the whole of the northern offshore array area. This decision followed consideration of feedback received relating to mitigating the effects of the offshore PEIR boundary in several key areas, including: landscape and visual impact, seascape, shipping and navigation, offshore ornithology and benthic ecology. Removal of the northern offshore array area significantly reduced a number of potential effects on each of these areas. The Project’s statement announcing this decision is available to read here.
The stage 3 (statutory) consultation web pages can be viewed here.
A detailed summary of stage 3 (statutory) consultation can be found on pages 71 to 110 of the Project’s Consultation Report.
The Project’s design continued to develop following the close of the stage 3 (statutory) consultation. This included ongoing design refinement informed by technical, engineering and environmental work, as well as consideration of feedback received to the stage 3 (statutory) consultation.
This process resulted in the need for a further stage of targeted consultation on updated proposals following localised changes to the Project’s onshore Preliminary Environmental Information Report (PEIR) boundary.
To ensure these proposed localised changes were subject to adequate consultation, a targeted consultation was undertaken between March and April 2024.
On 28 March 2024, National Grid Electricity Transmission (Sea Link), North Falls Offshore Wind Farm and Five Estuaries Offshore Wind Farm, working as a consortium, submitted a high-level feasibility study as part of its work to explore the potential for offshore coordination as part of the Offshore Transmission Network Review (OTNR) “Early Opportunities” workstream. In September 2024, the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero reviewed the high level feasibility study submitted by NGET, Five Estuaries and North Falls, amongst other information, and decided not to grant further funding to the consortium. The consortium’s statement following this decision is available to read here.
The Project’s Development Consent Order (DCO) application was submitted on 26 July 2024 and accepted for Examination by the Planning Inspectorate, on behalf of the Secretary of State, on 22 August 2024.
The Project published its first post DCO acceptance community newsletter in October 2024.
The stage 4 (targeted) consultation web pages can be viewed here.
A detailed summary of stage 4 (targeted) consultation can be found on pages 110 to 125 of the Project’s Consultation Report.
The Project’s Preliminary Meeting took place on 27 January 2025. The conclusion of this meeting triggered the beginning of the Project’s Examination.
Open Floor Hearing 1 took place the next day, on 28 January 2025.
Issue Specific Hearing 1 and Issue Specific Hearing 2 took place in April. Further hearings are expected to take place in June. Examination should conclude by 28 July 2025.
For more information about the Project’s current status, what happens next, and how to take part, please see here.
