Govt’s decision to reject £1.2bn cross-Channel power cable project overturned by High Court | Politics News

The government’s decision to reject plans for a £1.2 billion trans-Channel cable project has been overturned by the High Court.

Kwasi Kwartengbusiness secretary at the time, refused Aquind’s agreement to develop a new undersea electrical link between Portsmouth and Normandy in January.

But on Tuesday, Ms Justice Lieven ruled that Mr Kwarteng, who was briefly prime minister under Liz Truss, “broken the law” and failed to comply with the department’s National Energy Policy Statement when Give decision.

She said Mr Kwarteng had not “properly considered the information he was given” about using an alternative site in Mannington, Dorset, which would require a longer submarine cable to cross a shipping route. main.

The plans will now be turned over to current Business Secretary Grant Shapps for review.

A government spokesman said: “The UK government is disappointed with the outcome but we will consider the ruling carefully before deciding on next steps.”

Portsmouth MPs and city council opposed the project, while former energy minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan withdrew from the process after receiving funding from one of Aquind’s owners.

Aquind Limited is partly owned by former oil tycoon Viktor Fedotov, who has donated at least £430,000 to the Conservatives and MPs, while director Alexander Temerko has donated more than £730,000.

Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt, Portsmouth North MP, vowed to “fight” in the campaign to stop her project.

The former defense minister said: “Despite my disappointment with this decision, I remain confident that this unwanted and unnecessary project will never happen.

“It’s hard to imagine why any investor would want to be associated with it. I believe the government’s decision is the right one and it will stand.

“I also know that our entire community is going to make again why this is so damaging, not just for our local area but for the UK as a whole.

“We will continue to fight, and we must win.”

Mr Temerko had previously threatened legal action against Ms Mordaunt, who he said was the “biggest threat to security”.

Following Tuesday’s ruling, Aquind director Richard Glasspool said: “This is great news for the Aquind Connect project. We were disappointed and disappointed that Kwasi Kwarteng declined the order to agree to development.

“We look forward to re-engaging with local residents, stakeholders, environmental experts and energy professionals in pursuit of our commitment to meeting the UK’s zero energy target.”

Mr Kwarteng was not satisfied that “appropriate alternatives to the proposed route” had been fully considered and said there were particular concerns about the “proposed landing in an urban location”. “.

But at a hearing in November, Aquind claimed Mr Kwarteng was “misled” by officials, “failing” to consider some of the evidence and applying an unfair decision-making procedure.

Simon Bird KC, representing Aquind, told the court in written submissions that the proposed connected equipment would be able to transmit up to 16,000,000Mwh of electricity per year, which is about 5%, and 3% of total UK and French consumption.