Redefining Energy Distribution of the Future
The National Grid has recently made a £900 million investment in a new high voltage electricity connection between Bridgwater and Seabank, near Avonmouth, with work expected to see completion by 2025. The project involves 116 pylons along a 57km route – with 48.5km of overhead lines and 8.5km of underground wires. The low carbon energy from the EDF’s power station will bring electricity to 6 million homes and businesses across the Southwest of the country.
An international competition was held in 2011, where the new design was selected from over 250 entries. This was the same process in which the original design was chosen back in 1927 – almost a century ago! The T-Pylon structures are formed of a single pole with T-shaped cross arms, which hold the diamond ‘earring’ shapes to support the wiring. Each pylon sits at 35 metres high, which is a third shorter than the original structures. Additionally, they have a smaller footprint from taking up a smaller dimension of land due to the shape of the new design. The T-pylons form part of a wider push to mitigate the visual impact of transmission infrastructure.
As part of the National Grid’s commitment to reducing the visual impact of the structures, they have planted 1257 trees, 39,527m2 of woodland and 9960 linear metres of hedges, with plans for additional planting to take place. This goes above and beyond what was removed to install the structures. The capabilities of the structures to carry more electricity than the previous design mean only 116 pylons will be used in place of the previous 249 existing 132kV pylons across the Southwest landscape.
Adey Steel worked with Balfour Beatty to provide manufacturing, machining, surface treatment and delivery of plates to support the Nuclear Energy sector. The top plates form a key part of the foundations involved with securely installing the structures. We are proud to have been involved in such a key project for improving the impact of electricity usage on the UK landscapes and environment.
To submit an enquiry to work with our team on your upcoming Energy project, email us at: [email protected] or visit our Energy Sector page for more information.