Overview
- Etchea Energy says it has altered the planned route of the £430 million Greenlink interconnector to avoid the fan-created Dobby memorial at Freshwater West while the project continues toward completion.
- CEO Simon Ludlam said the company received 'hundreds of calls' after BBC coverage and that public pressure prompted planners to rethink the original landing point.
- Greenlink is a roughly 201-kilometre cable designed to link Wexford in Ireland with Freshwater West in Wales to share renewable power and strengthen grid security between the two countries.
- The reroute now brings the cable close to Bronze Age archaeological remains, a new proximity that Etchea and heritage authorities will need to manage through archaeological surveys and planning processes.
- The episode highlights the economic value of the Freshwater West memorial for international tourism and shows how media-driven public mobilization can alter large infrastructure decisions.