National Grid is inviting communities in Derbyshire, in the UK, to comment on proposals for a power line project that will help bolster energy supplies in the region and support the UK in meeting net zero.
The eight-week public consultation, which starts 14 May and runs until 9 July, will share proposals for Chesterfield to Willington, a new 60km high voltage electricity power line running between a new substation at Chesterfield (part of a separate project Brinsworth – High Marnham) and an existing substation at Willington.
The way homes and businesses in the UK use electricity is changing rapidly and with demand set to double in the coming years, a cleaner and a more secure form of energy is being generated by new offshore wind farms, said the TSO.
Existing power lines between the North and the Midlands, in England, do not have capacity to accommodate the increased power flows from offshore wind.
Building a new power line between Chesterfield and Willington will increase the capacity in the centre of the country, enabling cleaner, greener energy to be carried around the network, benefiting homes and businesses in Derbyshire and beyond, and supporting the UK’s offshore wind and net zero targets, said National Grid.
The proposals follow the publication in 2022 of the electricity system operator’s ‘Pathway to 2030 Holistic Network Design’ which established the onshore and offshore electricity transmission network reinforcements required to meet government net zero targets, including the Chesterfield to Willington project.
The project also forms part of National Grid’s The Great Grid Upgrade which will see other significant new infrastructure built across England and Wales to move more clean energy from where it’s generated to where it’s needed, helping the UK meet its net zero ambitions and reduce its reliance on fossil fuels.
National Grid has recently announced the launch of a pioneering new partnership with seven supply chain partners to address supply chain challenges and skills shortage across nine major infrastructure projects across England and Wales, which includes the Chesterfield to Willington project.
National Grid project director Leanne Evans said: “The government’s offshore wind and net zero targets means an increase in the amount of wind generation developed offshore.
“The new power line we are proposing will mean more clean energy generated, mostly from offshore wind farms can be carried and moved around the network in the Midlands to where it is needed, benefiting homes and businesses in Derbyshire and beyond.
“The launch of our consultation is the beginning of our engagement with communities and stakeholders along the proposed route corridor and we encourage people to share their views as we develop our proposals in more detail.”
The project is classified as Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project and requires a special type of planning application, a Development Consent Order.
If permission is granted, construction would be expected to begin in 2028 and be operational in 2031.