Wind Farms (Hansard, 17 December 2002)

§ David Burnside
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the grid references are of the location of the landfall for the proposed offshore wind farm at Tunes Plateau; if Coleraine, Limavady, Londonderry and Moyle local authorities will be consulted on the proposed development of the wind farm; and if he will make a statement on the planning process for the proposed development. [87305]

§ Mr. Pearson
It is not possible to provide grid references of the location of any landfall for the Tunes Plateau offshore wind farm because a wide range of potential options are still being considered from an engineering and environmental perspective. No decision on any potential landfall can be made until completion of the following studies:

NIE's wind farm connection feasibility studies;

Ornithology and ecology studies (covering both marine and onshore elements);

Geotechnical and geophysical studies (covering both marine and onshore elements);

Marine and onshore archaeology studies; and

Coastal processes and seabed assessments.

Coleraine, Limavady, Londonderry and Moyle councils were fully consulted during completion of the scope for the environmental impact assessment and will continue to be consulted as further information about the impact of this project comes to light.
Any developments relating to wind farms which require planning permission will be processed in accordance with current planning procedures; and policies in relation to public advertisement, neighbour notification and council consultation will apply. To date the Department of the Environment has not received such an application.

§ David Burnside
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the source and amount of grants provided to the proposed offshore wind farm development at Tunes Plateau; and what the expected long-term savings to the electricity consumer in Northern Ireland through the proposed development of a wind farm at Tunes Plateau will be. [87288]

§ Mr. Pearson
A private sector consortium comprising B9 Energy, Renewable Energy Systems and PowerGen are carrying out, at their own expense, extensive feasibility studies into the possible development of an offshore wind farm at Tunes Plateau. The project has pre-qualified with the Department of Trade and Industry to be considered for assistance from the UK offshore wind Capital Grant Scheme to ensure that grant aid could be provided from that fund if the development proceeds and it proves necessary.
The precise nature and size of any offshore wind farm will emerge following the conclusion of the feasibility assessment that is currently ongoing. Until the completion of the feasibility assessment no precise calculations can be made about the volume of electricity 730W that might be generated from the project. Calculations of long-term savings in electricity costs could only be made in the context of certainty regarding the final design of, and output from, the project and taking into account factors such as the costs of grid connection, the alternative costs of electricity from other sources and fossil fuel prices (which are subject to fluctuation).

§ David Burnside
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will make a statement on the(a) life span, (b) financial costs and (c) environmental impact of decommissioning offshore wind farm sites. [87289]

§ Mr. Pearson
The design life of offshore wind turbines and infrastructure assets is typically considered to be 20 to 25 years.
Capital costs for offshore wind farms are of the order of £1,000,000/megawatt (MW) installed. This will vary considerably from site to site according to the foundation designs employed, the depth of water at the site and other aspects of the nature of the project site. The report, "Assessment of Offshore Wind Energy Resources", commissioned jointly by the Department of Enterprise Trade and Investment and the Department of Public Enterprise in the Republic of Ireland, estimated that costs per installed megawatt (MW) (excluding decommissioning) for typical projects around the island of Ireland ranged from £840,000 to £1,080,000.
There has not yet been an off-shore wind farm decommissioned anywhere in the world, it is not therefore possible to accurately determine the costs of decommissioning.
The environmental impact of decommissioning an offshore wind farm is very site-specific and directly related to the foundation options employed during construction.
However the actual environmental impacts of offshore wind farms including impacts associated with decommissioning have been assessed in the report "An Assessment of the Environmental Effects of Offshore Wind Farms" completed by the Environmental Technology Support Unit in 2000 for Metoc (ETSU/W35/00543/RP, 2000).