Balfour Beatty has begun work with SSEN Transmission on the development of nine grid projects across the north of Scotland.
The work forms part of SSEN Transmission’s ‘Pathway to 2030′ network redevelopment programme, to which Balfour Beatty was appointed in August 2023.
This first phase of works will see the infrastructure group provide technical solutions for three new 400kV overhead lines, running from Beauly to Blackhillock, Blackhillock to Peterhead and Fetteresso to Tealing.
It will also upgrade the Tealing to Alyth and the Tealing to Westfield overhead lines to 400kV operations.
In addition, Balfour Beatty will built two new 400kV substations, one near Peterhead and one near Braco, along with a new 132kV substation near Peterhead.
Finally, it will extend the New Deer substation and 400kV cable connections to the New Deer 2 substation.
During this initial phase of works, the company will provide its expertise to support SSEN Transmission to identify and resolve any potential construction challenges, streamline the planning process, advise on the best use of materials, plan the phasing of work to ensure optimal productivity and scope out the use of modern methods of construction.
Construction contracts for these nine projects are expected to be awarded from the end of 2025 into 2026.
Balfour Beatty’s chief executive of transport, energy and power major projects Steve Tarr said: “As the largest power transmission contractor in the UK, we have a key role to play in realising the UK and Scottish government’s ambitious renewable energy targets.
“This early-stage collaboration is incredibly exciting for all of us at Balfour Beatty, as it will allow us to bring our knowledge, built and fostered over 100 years, to the fore of these ambitious schemes to drive efficiencies and speed up the construction programme.”