Work could finally start on Norwich Energy Innovation Park

Wymondham-based oil group Goff Petroleum is seeking a lawful development certificate for the Norwich Energy Innovation Park, an 11-acre complex to be built just outside the town which was given the green light in 2021. 

Despite receiving the thumbs up from local authorities, the certificate would prove that the proposed development is lawful and prevent potential interference by planning bodies should they question any "ambiguous" details.

The plans for Norwich Energy Innovation Park in Wymondham (Image: Archant) Applicants most often seek a lawful development certificate to ensure a project is compliant with regulations, therefore protecting it against further scrutiny. 

The Norwich Energy Innovation Park will include workshops, offices and other communal working areas for start-up businesses and new ventures related to sustainable energy generation within the Goff Group. 

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The new development will also see the construction of a new 1,177 car park for the company's employees and solar panels will be included on-site.

It will also include cafe facilities, a social hub space and a second, 269-space car park to serve other occupants of the park.

The site is expected to create more than 300 jobs. 

Consultations for the park were held in the second half of 2020, with outline planning permission sought from South Norfolk District Council in January 2021. 

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At a Wymondham Town Council planning meeting on January 19 that year, councillors praised the development's potential to bring new business and jobs to the town.

Work has yet to start on the project dispute receiving planning permission four years ago (Image: Lanpro) During the consultation councillors Annette James and Suzanne Nuri-Nixon voiced their worries over its environmental impact.

However, Goff Petroleum revealed plans to provide 5.63 acres of grassland nearby to offset any erosion of local ecology.

The committee later agreed to recommend approval of the energy park, subject to the submission of some biodiversity reports, though Mrs James said she was "reluctant" to do so.