Holmes & Hills LLP were delighted to be invited to give a presentation to the Essex Agricultural Valuers Association (EAVA) last night in respect of Development Consent Order (DCO) schemes and, more specifically, National Grid’s East Anglia GREEN Pylon scheme and Bramford to Twinstead reinforcement scheme. We were joined by Louise Staples MRICS FAAV from the NFU who made a 3-hour journey to join the event and talked about the valuable work, engagement and lobbying that Louise and her team do in respect of Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) across the country.
The Holmes & Hills Team shared a 30 minute presentation with Catherine Hibbert giving an overview of DCOs and the legal framework behind them and the expected timetable for their progression, Michael Harman gave an update as to the two Pylon schemes noting that National Grid want both to be “live” and operational by 2030, with Rebecca Mason and Laura Gale talking about the legal documents expected throughout the life of a DCOs scheme, to include comments about the revised pro forma non-invasive licence agreement being circulated by National Grid.
Louise then talked about her experience of DCOs including various offshore windfarm schemes and also the A14 widening project. Louise regaled us with stories of high-level meetings with Statutory Bodies and Parliament Select Committee meetings. Clearly, Louise and her team at the NFU are very experienced and take a pro-active role on behalf of NFU members to ensure that NSIPs and DCOs are managed and pursued appropriately and to safeguard the viability of farm businesses and ensuring that land can still be farmed productively.
The evening was well-attended and we thank the EAVA again for the invitation, with special thanks to Paul Walker (Whirledge & Nott) and Guy French (Foxes Rural) for their care and attention in organising and hosting the event at the Plaza, Braintree District Council’s recently-opened enterprise and innovation centre.
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