POWER cables from a massive new windfarm project may be brought ashore at Felixstowe.

Developers are looking at the possibility of tunnelling under the links golf course at Felixstowe Ferry and countryside in the Falkenham area to bring in the electricity from the project, which will be the UK’s second largest wind farm.

Town councillors were told that no decisions had been made yet – and consultation was still taking place.

Scottish Power Renewables (SPR) and Vattenfall – the team behind the East Anglia ONE Offshore Windfarm – hope to develop, build and generate up to 7,200 megawatts of electricity in the 6,000sq km zone off Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft.

The first phase of the scheme would be built about 25 miles off the north Suffolk coast, covering an area of 300 sq km and work is expected to start in 2015.

Chairman of the plans committee at Felixstowe Town Council, Andy Smith said the companies had visited the Town Hall to explain the project and how it might affect the Felixstowe peninsula.

He said they were looking at four cables coming ashore in the Felixstowe and Deben estuary area.

“The main areas they appear to be looking at at the moment are the golf course and Bawdsey, with the cables then heading towards the Kirton and Falkeham area,” he said.

“These high voltage cables would then have to take a route which joined up with the main network.”

The Orwell Bridge could not take the cables and so a path was being plotted through the countryside to reach a new sub station at Bramford, near Ipswich.

There would be 70km of undersea cables to reach the Suffolk coast and then 40km of underground cables to reach the new converter sub station.

Mr Smith said the council would have to wait until the planning application is submitted late next year to see final details of where the cables would come ashore and any dusruption or impact for the area.