LIONLINK 

Landfall site, Walberswick: The proposed landfall site was chosen due to the shorter onshore route to Walberswick, decreasing overall environmental impact of the project and reduce disruption. The site is where the offshore high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cables connect to the proposed underground HVDC cables.  

Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) – a drilling technique that does not require trenches – is expected to be used to bring cables onshore and avoid disruption to Walberswick Beach and public rights of way. Once complete, no visible infrastructure will be left on the beach or shoreline.  

Underground HVDC cables: The proposed underground HVDC cables would run approximately 20 km from the proposed landfall site at Walberswick to the proposed converter station, east of Saxmundham. 

Converter station: The converter station changes electricity from the direct current (DC) used to transmit across long distances to alternating current (AC), to enable electricity to be supplied to homes and businesses. The site is located east of Saxmundham and south of the B1119, adjacent to Sea Link’s proposed converter station. The buildings are expected to be up to 26 metres high and have a footprint of up to 8.1 hectares. 

LionLink is still in pre-application stage.  

Currently, NGV is preparing the report including feedback from non-statutory and statutory consultations – the latter ended in March 2026.  

The report needs to show how feedback influenced changes to the project or explain why changes were not made. An Environmental Statement showing likely significant effects and proposed mitigation is also produced at this stage. 

These documents will be part of the Development Consent Order (DCO) application to the Planning Inspectorate (PINS). 

It is anticipated that National Grid Ventures will submit the full DCO Application in late 2026. If the DCO is accepted – this can take around three months – LionLink will move into pre-examination stage, which requires further community engagement to help shape the final project. 

Depending on the developer, some additional engagement can take place in the meantime. This has not been confirmed either way for LionLink at the time of writing. 

For more information about the NSIPs planning process, and when you need to be involved, download the ‘Getting to Grips with NSIPs’ guide. 

Prepare to sign up as an Interested Party on the PINS website, when registration opens. 

You will then be able to submit a Relevant Representation (RR). It is very important that town and parish councils submit an RR, otherwise you will not be able to participate in the rest of the planning process. 

An RR includes a summary of what a town or parish council – and community members if they’ve registered as individuals – agrees with and/or disagrees with in the DCO. And you can include the main issues you think need to be resolved, and the impact these issues would have on the community. 

Clerks, officers or councillors can register twice: once as a council, and again as a local resident. This means one person can submit two RRs which can differ in opinion and ideas. It is essential the two RRs are separate, with no overspill of personal views into the council’s response. 

By signing up for alerts from LionLink or PINS (links below) you will be told when registration opens. 

The project’s community benefits package is in development and will be formalised as the examination process progresses. SALC will aim to provide guidance and additional support to relevant councils as soon as we are able to.