Major developments are planned for across the county which could alter the face of Norfolk.  

Here are seven of the biggest projects we could hear more about in 2024. 


Eastern Daily Press: A model of the new hospital, which will be built on the QEH's current main car park (Image: Chris Bishop)A model of the new hospital, which will be built on the QEH's current main car park (Image: Chris Bishop) (Image: Chris Bishop)

Hospital rebuild  

Replacing the Queen Elizabeth Hospital (QEH), in King's Lynn, has become increasingly urgent, with the roof held up by thousands of props. 

A £862m scheme was finally added to the government’s rebuild programme in May and work on the project will progress in 2024. 

The first stage will see a new multi-storey car park built so the new hospital can be built on existing parking space. 

Work is set to begin on relocating the hospital's helipad from its current site near the main entrance to farmland off the nearby B1145 Gayton Road. When built, the new hospital will have a helipad on its roof. 

Eastern Daily Press: The Wash tidal barrage artist's impressionThe Wash tidal barrage artist's impression (Image: Centre Port)

Wash barrage 

A bid to build a tidal barrage stretching from Norfolk to Lincolnshire was revealed at the end of 2022 and has proved to be a controversial suggestion. 

If given the go-ahead it would see a tidal-powered deep sea container port built in the Wash, producing huge amounts of renewable energy and protecting the area from flooding. 

But Conservation groups warn 'catastrophic' damage to one of the UK's most important wetlands would be caused. 

Centre Port, the company behind the scheme, is trying to raise £5m for a feasibility study for the scheme. 

More information on the project is likely to be revealed next year, including whether the study will progress. 

Eastern Daily Press: An aerial view of Ely junctionAn aerial view of Ely junction (Image: Network Rail)

Ely Junction upgrade 

Crucial East Anglian railway upgrades were announced by prime minister Rishi Sunak at the Conservative party conference in October. 

After scrapping the northern leg of the HS2 rail route, Mr Sunak said some of the money would instead be used to rebuild Ely North junction. 

The Department for Transport (DfT) has said it is in the "early stages" of planning the next steps, including delivery timelines for the schemes, and more information can be expected next year. 

Ely junction is particularly important to Norfolk because it links five lines connecting Norwich, Ipswich, Cambridge, Peterborough and King’s Lynn, but has become a bottleneck because it is operating at full capacity. 

The improvements, long called for by business bosses and MPs, would mean capacity for freight trains would increase from 6.5 trains per hour to 10, while it would double passenger services on the Ely to King’s Lynn and Ipswich to Peterborough routes. 

Eastern Daily Press: Bacton gas terminal from the air. Picture: MIKE PAGEBacton gas terminal from the air. Picture: MIKE PAGE (Image: Mike Page)

Bacton’s future 

Hopes have been raised that Bacton Gas Terminal on the north Norfolk coast could become the centrepiece of the UK’s shift towards cleaner fuels.  

Several groups have suggested the site should become a hub for the emerging hydrogen industry. 

Hopes reached a peak in November when the prime minister Rishi Sunak visited the plant and called it a “hidden hero”. 

Next year should see more information revealed about the future of Bacton. 

Eastern Daily Press: Vattenfall has sold the rights to develop the Norfolk Offshore Wind ZoneVattenfall has sold the rights to develop the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone (Image: Vattenfall)

Wind farms  

There are a series of major wind farms planned for the Norfolk coast.   

Work on one of the sites came to a halt earlier this year after the owner, Vattenfall, was hit by the rising cost of inflation. 

The projects, Norfolk Boreas – which was paused - Norfolk Vanguard West and Norfolk Vanguard East, are known collectively as the Norfolk Offshore Wind Zone and are three of the biggest wind farms in Britain. 

Earlier this month the rights to develop the wind farms were sold by Vattenfall to German rival RWE, which may now restart the development. 

When built, the three schemes will supply around 4.2 gigawatts of power to the UK’s grid, enough to supply energy to four million households. 

Eastern Daily Press: An artist's impression of what the whole Operations and Maintenance Campus area in South Denes, Great Yarmouth, could look like once redevelopedAn artist's impression of what the whole Operations and Maintenance Campus area in South Denes, Great Yarmouth, could look like once redeveloped (Image: NCC)

Great Yarmouth green energy campus  

A new green energy campus, tipped to provide a major boost to the economy of Great Yarmouth and bring hundreds of jobs, is set to be completed next year. 

Major piling works at the new £24.8m offshore campus began earlier this month with the build expected to be finished by the end of 2024. 

The project seeks to capitalise on the well-established offshore renewables sector off the east coast and the Enterprise Zone that covers sites in Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft. 

Eastern Daily Press: A new library and community hub will be opening in the former Argos store in King's LynnA new library and community hub will be opening in the former Argos store in King's Lynn (Image: Chris Bishop)

Kings Lynn library replacement  

A £12m community hub will bring a new library and a place where people can meet and learn new skills. 

The next stage of the design will start next year, with a public consultation to be carried out over which services will be based at the hub, along with its design. 

The current King’s Lynn library, on London Road, will stay open until the opening of the hub in 2025.