RWE launches Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone Community Fund

The cable comes ashore at Happisburgh and is being laid in huge trenches being dug through the countryside near North Walsham, Alysham, Reepham and Dereham before reaching a substation at Necton.

RWE - the German energy company behind the cable and the wind farms out to sea - has now launched a community fund for the towns and villages affected by the works.

The cable will reach land at Happisburgh, where surveys were carried out earlier this year (Image: Mike Page) The firm has appointed Norfolk Community Foundation to distribute grants from the fund, with a remit to focus on causes and groups nearest to the cable route.

Future rounds of funding will include areas like Great Yarmouth, where RWE is building its operations and maintenance base for the wind farms.

READ MORE: RWE commits to Great Yarmouth port base for Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone

RWE bought the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone from Swedish developer Vattenfall for £963m earlier this year.

The Offshore Wind Zone's three wind farms - Norfolk Vanguard East, Norfolk Vanguard West and Norfolk Boreas - are located 30 to 50 miles off the Norfolk coast.

Together they will power around four million homes across the UK.

Another cable is also being dug through Norfolk, by Danish firm Ørsted, bringing electricity from its offshore windfarm, Hornsea 3.

Its cable, which comes ashore at Weybourne, has provoked criticism from people living along its route after material dug up for the trench polluted the river Glaven.

A view of the Hornsea 3 wind farm cable trench being dug, showing Kelling Heath, the village of Weybourne beyond it, and the north Norfolk coast (Image: Mike Page)

Katy Woodington, RWE’s community investment manager, said: “It is the start of an opportunity to deliver a flexible fund that can support innovative projects that will not only improve community wellbeing and environmental sustainability but also create lasting legacies that future generations can be proud of.

“Critically this is about local communities being in the driving seat.

"We understand that local people know their area best which is why we want to make sure that through the local panel they are in control of funding decisions and the future direction of the fund."

RWE's Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone's three projects: Norfolk Vanguard East, Norfolk Vanguard West and Norfolk Boreas (Image: RWE)

The cable route through Norfolk for RWE's Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone (Image: RWE)

All three of RWE's wind farm projects have secured seabed rights, grid connections, development consent orders and all other key permits, and onshore construction activities are under way.

RWE also plans to create the UK’s largest solar farm in Norfolk. The High Grove solar farm would cover 4,000 acres of land on five sites close to Dereham and Swaffham, on either side of the A47.

If it goes ahead, High Grove would be nearly 16 times larger than the UK’s current biggest.

RWE held a public information event in Reepham recently to tell people about the plans to lay cables (Image: Newsquest)

The fund is now open for the first round of applications.

Claire Cullens, chief executive of Norfolk Community Foundation, said: “At Norfolk Community Foundation, we recognise the passion and commitment of our local communities to create a greener Norfolk.

"With a wealth of innovative plans and ideas, our communities are poised to make significant environmental strides, given the right funding and support.

"Partnering with RWE presents us with a unique, once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to turn these ambitions into reality.

"We can’t wait to roll up our sleeves and get started on this exciting journey together, towards a sustainable future for Norfolk."

For more information about how to apply the initial discovery funding round, including eligibility criteria and area boundaries, visit: https://norfolkwind.me/CommunityFund

RWE launches its Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone Community Fund at the UEA Enterprise Centre (Image: RWE) Tom Glover, UK country chair of RWE, attended the launch event at the UEA Enterprise Centre (Image: RWE)RWE announced it had acquired the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone from Swedish developer Vattenfall in December 2023, completing the £963m purchase in March this year (Image: Vattenfall)