Minister for Energy Consumers (): This Statement concerns
two applications for development consent made under the Planning
Act 2008: one by GT R4 Limited, trading as Outer Dowsing Offshore
Wind for the construction and operation of an offshore generating
station comprised of up to 100 Wind Turbine Generators, with a
capacity of up to 1.5 GW, off the Lincolnshire coast in the
southern North Sea; and the other by Morecambe Offshore Wind Farm
Limited for the construction and operation of an offshore
generating station comprising up to 35 wind turbine generators,
located in the eastern Irish Sea.
Under section 107(1) of the Planning Act 2008, the Secretary of
State must make a decision on an application within three months
of the receipt of the Examining Authority's report unless
exercising the power under section 107(3) of the Act to set a new
deadline. Where a new deadline is set, the Secretary of State
must make a Statement to Parliament to announce it.
The statutory deadline for the decision on the Outer Dowsing
Offshore Wind Farm Project was 10 October 2025. I have decided to
allow an extension and to set a new deadline of 10 February 2026.
This is to allow time to request further information that was not
provided for consideration during the examination period and to
give all interested parties the opportunity to review and comment
on such information.
The statutory deadline for the decision on the Morecambe Offshore
Wind Farm Generation Assets proposed development is 23 October
2025. I have decided to set a new statutory deadline of 18
December 2025. This is to allow time to request further
information that was not available for consideration during the
examination period and to give all interested parties the
opportunity to review and comment on such information.
Whilst it is not my preference to extend, I am clear that
applications for consent for energy projects submitted under the
Planning Act 2008 must meet the necessary standards.
The decision to set the new deadline for these applications is
without prejudice to the decision on whether to grant or refuse
development consent.
