Why diggers and dumper trucks will move in on famous North Wales beach

Wales Online

19-05-2025

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Major works will take place on a North Wales beach as part of a multi-billion pound investment. The HyNet Carbon Dioxide Pipeline will transport carbon dioxide captured from existing industry in North Wales and North West England, as well as from new hydrogen production facilities.
This will be transported to Point of Ayr gas terminal at Talacre and from there the CO2 will be piped under the sea to depleted offshore gas reservoirs in Liverpool Bay.
The marine element of the project includes installation of electrical and fibre optic cables from the Mean High Water Spring (MHWS) line at Talacre to the New Douglas Offshore Platform, which will receive and distribute CO2 for storage in the storage sites.
Consent for this is being sought under a Marine Licence application submitted to Natural Resources Wales' Marine Licencing Team. Following feedback received on the original Marine Licence application for the marine element of the Project, the electrical and fibre optic cables installation has necessitated a realignment to avoid impacts on vessel movements in and out of the Port of Mostyn.
This will require the realignment of the cables within the foreshore area from the Horizontal Directional Drilling(HDD) Entry Pit to the HDD Exit Pit at the MHWS line, which lies outside of the planning application area approved under an existing planning permission. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox
Therefore, consent for the new cable alignment is being sought from Flintshire council through the submission of a new Town and Country Planning Application (TCPA). The new alignment would be approximately 250m further east along Talacre beach. It will require major excavations for the pits and the cable route.
In addition to reducing impact on vessel movements, they said the new cable alignment will have several benefits
These include:
• A slightly smaller footprint, due to a more direct route
• Realigned cable laying, construction plant, and repositioning of the HDD Exit Pit willbe:— An additional 250m (2,300m in total) away from the Little Tern colony at GronantDunes; and— Routed through area of lower foraging distribution
• More efficient, direct crossing of Talacre Beach, and Welsh Channel; Reduced disturbance to the Port of Mostyn
• Faster lay operation across channel avoids complicated, time consuming, sinuous manoeuvre of the Cable Laying Vessel on anchors within the Welsh Channel
• Decreased impact on channel traffic as fewer support vessel movements requireddue to the reduced complexity of anchor movements
• Reduced vessel time in channel due to shorter pull operation
Subject to planning permission, it is anticipated that HDD conduit construction, and cable installation, will commence in February to April 2026. The revised timing of the HDD Exit Pitworks has been scheduled for February 2026, which is outside of the Little Tern breeding season.
The cable shore pull, and simultaneous lay and burial, by the cable laying vessel, are scheduled for July 2026 at the end of the Little Tern breeding season, close to their migratory departure.
Excavations will be covered or securely fenced (with no potential access points beneath fencing) when the site is closed (e.g. overnight) to prevent entrapment of animals. The public will be informed of the nature, timing and duration of particular construction activities and the duration of the construction works by newsletters and liaison with the Construction Contractor.
Temporary screens will be erected around the boundary of the proposed development to reduce visual impacts to sensitive receptors and protect pedestrians from any dust generated. Works adjacent to Point of Ayr Holiday Park and Haven Presthaven Holiday Park, where practicable, have been programmed outside of the peak holiday seasons.
The intertidal works are envisaged to take up to eight weeks. This is expected to be separated into two different periods. One will be for the Gronant dunes HDD works (estimated at around 4 weeks), and another for the cable pulls (estimated at around 4 weeks), during which certain locations will be closed off entirely to the public.
Temporary diversions will be arranged across the dunes during this period for pedestrian use.
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