Lincolnshire County Council‘s legal department has written to National Grid requesting the data used to justify its claim that a major pylon project is cheaper than seabed cabling. The council believes the costing for National Grid’s proposal for pylons and substations across 80 miles of productive farmland between Grimsby and Walpole are “fundamentally flawed”.
The authority claims that its officers have already requested official costings twice and have been ignored by the Grid. It is claimed that National Grid is “deliberately using out of date costings” to justify pylons over seabed cabling and that it has “not considered other alternatives” like investing in existing pylon networks.
The county council also believes that National Grid is “ignoring indirect costs” such as compensation needed to pay to land and property owners, extra infrastructure needed to allow for the maintenance of the network and the compensation that councils would claim for loss of tourism. The project would see pylons erected across a large stretch of east Lincolnshire.
National Grid says it is “confident that the processes we follow to identify and assess potential strategic options and cost are robust, and the most appropriate”. However, Councillor Martin Hill, leader of Lincolnshire County Council, said: “We have been quite clear about the impact these proposals would have on the county if they came to fruition, and we deserve to have the full information to ensure that National Grid has truly considered all the options before decimating Lincolnshire’s countryside.
(Image: National Grid)
“The county council is experienced with dealing with commercially sensitive information, so hiding behind this excuse simply does not make sense. We believe their data is flawed, but if the Grid stands by the claim that pylons are a cheaper, they need to simply tell us how they have reached that conclusion – show us the figures.
“Upgrades to national energy infrastructure need to be done properly, and we’re seeking assurances for our residents that every option is being properly considered.”
National Grid claims the estimated capital cost of an onshore underground alternative for Grimsby to Walpole is approximately £6.5bn, and £4.3bn for an offshore subsea cable. The company says the cost of both alternatives are “significantly greater” than the approximately £1bn cost of the onshore overhead line option.
A spokesperson for National Grid said: “Before proposing new reinforcements, we always aim to upgrade the existing network infrastructure. There is no existing transmission infrastructure along the route from Grimsby West until south of Bicker Fen, and the existing pylons from Bicker Fen to Walpole are already designed to carry as much power as possible.
“We are confident that the processes we follow to identify and assess potential strategic options and cost are robust, and the most appropriate. This has been tried and tested through numerous previous projects, the formal examination process, and ultimately the decision will be made by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.”
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