GridLink electricity cable from France will pass through the Medway Estuary

I emailed Intertek on Friday asking for more information after receiving this from them. It looks to me as this could potentially severely restrict access to and from Stangate Creek and past the LNG terminal during cable operations. I will update this thread if I get any more information.
 
Seems a fairly bizarre choice of route compared with the 1980's 2GW DC link which terminates at Sellindge near Folkestone. That one is 73 km long of which 29km is undersea. This proposal will require much longer undersea cables, from Dunkerque, round the N Foreland up the Thames to Sheerness, then up the Medway before coming ashore. Seems to indicate that undersea cables are now no more expensive than underground - I suppose that at least cooling is less of a problem undersea.

Clearly installation will cause some obstruction to navigation, but I guess if it's manageable in the Channel with today's shipping, it must be manageable in the Mudway and, hopefully there will be a minimum of maintenance during its operational lifetime. Operational issues for us yotties will relate to any limitations to mooring or anchoring they seek to impose and, again I guess, that will depend on whether they plan to bury the cables in the seabed and, if so, how deep.

Really need to see their detailed proposal to the MMO for a more useful comment.

Peter.
 
Well a couple of things to watch out for based on previous similar works...
One is that if they are crossing the existing windfarm export cables, that needs to happen in the same zone that's already been created, and buoyed, north of Herne Bay. When that first rock berm was laid, its significance wasn't realised by anyone, including I believe Trinity House, until the operators suddenly published an NtM detailing the new depth of a few inches that was left over it.
The other is that by default the operators may well seek to close the Medway for days on end when they lay the cable. The original closures that the builders of Kentish Flats asked for along the Kent coast were ridiculous and totally over the top. London Array did the same in the East Swale, tried to close it altogether for a long period. In both cases, when met with howls of protest the requirements were reduced to a reasonable exclusion zone around the cable-laying vessel.
Vigilance needed!
 
Cantata said:
Well a couple of things to watch out for based on previous similar works...
One is that if they are crossing the existing windfarm export cables, that needs to happen in the same zone that's already been created, and buoyed, north of Herne Bay. When that first rock berm was laid, its significance wasn't realised by anyone, including I believe Trinity House, until the operators suddenly published an NtM detailing the new depth of a few inches that was left over it.
The other is that by default the operators may well seek to close the Medway for days on end when they lay the cable. The original closures that the builders of Kentish Flats asked for along the Kent coast were ridiculous and totally over the top. London Array did the same in the East Swale, tried to close it altogether for a long period. In both cases, when met with howls of protest the requirements were reduced to a reasonable exclusion zone around the cable-laying vessel.
Vigilance needed!
Click to expand...
The attachment that shows the route across the estuary isn't very clear, but it looks as though the route heads out to near the Red Sands Towers, North of the Kentish Flats Wind Farm before dipping South of Pan Sands towards deeper water in the Queens Channel and crossing the London Array cables somewhere near the Brit N, N Cardinal buoy. I cut across that spit en route to Gravelines on my final trip of the season at the end of October. Probably the most worrying bit is a dog leg in the cable on the edge of Grain Spit just North of Garison Point. I guess that is the crossing over the BritNed cable. That could have quite a significant impact to those of us that sail in to the Medway tacking into a SW breeze.
 
FulmarJeddo said:
The attachment that shows the route across the estuary isn't very clear, but it looks as though the route heads out to near the Red Sands Towers, North of the Kentish Flats Wind Farm before dipping South of Pan Sands towards deeper water in the Queens Channel and crossing the London Array cables somewhere near the Brit N, N Cardinal buoy. I cut across that spit en route to Gravelines on my final trip of the season at the end of October. Probably the most worrying bit is a dog leg in the cable on the edge of Grain Spit just North of Garison Point. I guess that is the crossing over the BritNed cable. That could have quite a significant impact to those of us that sail in to the Medway tacking into a SW breeze.
Click to expand...

Yes, having now looked at the route map you're of course right about the crossing point of the London Array cables, thanks for that (and thank goodness for that). So the new one goes nowhere near the Kentish Flats - the existing crossing point I referred to is south of the KF.
However my point about being watchful for the operators trying to close off swathes of the Medway for long periods during cable laying is still valid.
 
No answers yet, but at least they seem to be listening:

Dear David,

Thank you for your interest in the project. The project is in the planning stages so the schedule will rely on achieving the necessary planning consents. However, it is currently anticipated that construction would start 2021 with commissioning of the cable in 2024.

With respect to your query regarding rights of passage and exclusion zones we are currently conducting an navigation risk assessment for the project. I have sought some advice from colleagues on how passage to and from Stangate Creek will be affected / maintained but have yet to receive a response. I will revert in the New Year when I have an answer.

Regards
Anna
 
Hopefully there wont be any depth issues - would be good to know early on rather than find there is a rock berm with little water over it after it has been laid.
 
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