A PUBLIC consultation will be held over plans to extend North Wales’s offshore windfarm across the coast of Conwy.

Awel y Môr Offshore Wind Farm is being planned by RWE Renewables (RWE) about 10.5km off the coast to the west of the existing Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm.

The new collection of wind turbines, expected to be between 51 and 107 depending on their size, would cover an area of 106km2 from Colwyn Bay to Conwy. RWE expects to submit its application to the UK Government's Planning Inspectorate in 2022.

A hybrid consultation will be carried out from August 31 to October 11, including a virtual exhibition via the project website and face-to-face consultations in outdoor spaces across the region.

RWE has selected the preferred siting of the transmission infrastructure with onshore cables joining the coastland between Rhyl and Prestatyn, passing through Rhuddlan to a substation in Bodelwyddan.

The proposed turbines' maximum rotor diameter would be 300m, with rocks and materials placed on the seabed to protect the branched string cables from erosion.

RWE said it will work with landowners and carry out environmental surveys for the transmission route in the coming months.

Janet Finch-Saunders, MS for Aberconwy and shadow minister for climate change, previously raised concern over the impact of the plans of seabird populations and that the turbines could be twice the size of the existing turbines, impacting “on the vista and natural horizon of Llandudno bay”.

“Such a scar on the landscape could have a detrimental impact on Llandudno which is already suffering more than enough as a result of Covid-19,” she said. “I am all for green energy, but we need a mix of technologies, not more windfarms."

The MS has urged members of the public to take part in the consultation.

“In recognising the wide-ranging concerns of local constituents with regards to the potential knock-on impact of this long-running project, I am pleased to be actively encouraging constituents to register their views so that they can be actioned as part of its forward progression,” the MS said.

“Renewable energy will play a central role in our green coronavirus recovery, though progress must be balanced against legitimate concerns.

“With their turbines potentially being as tall as the Eiffel Tower and quite possibly having an impact on the local seabird population, spatial planning will be key to my submission to the Awel y Môr consultation.

“These consultations can have a substantial impact on plans and so I welcome this opportunity for civic engagement with the community.”

The existing Gwynt y Môr windfarm, which opened in 2015, created over 700 jobs during construction and about £90 million was spent on Welsh suppliers. A total of 100 long-term jobs are now attached to the site.