Overhead pylons and powerlines are essential for the energy transition as they are the least environmentally impactful and most affordable way of transmitting electricity, according to National Grid.
National Grid deputy director for external affairs strategic infrastructure Tom McGarry outlined the utility company’s position about onshore overhead electricity transmission infrastructure during a panel discussion at the UK’s Real Estate Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) in Leeds on 21 May.
He said: “Believe it or not, we are not lattice steel junkies. Pylons and overhead lines are the least environmentally impactful way of transporting electricity. They’re also the cheapest.”
He made the comments in reference to the local opposition onshore overhead electricity transmission infrastructure faces.
Suffolk County Council is one authority that has expressed distaste for overhead powerlines. It contested National Grid’s £895M Norwich to Tilbury transmission project, saying an offshore solution needs further investigation.
National Grid has said an offshore solution would cost around £4bn.
In March 2024, National Grid ESO – a separate company responsible for balancing the electricity grid – published its Beyond 2030: A national blueprint for a decarbonised electricity system in Great Britain report.
The report proposed an expanded offshore grid and a new North-to-South onshore electrical “spine” in Great Britain as part of an overall £58bn investment plan for the UK’s power system to achieve the 2035 decarbonisation goal.
National Grid is planning to effectively re-wire Great Britain under its Great Grid Upgrade development campaign which will expand electrification and route electricity generated by offshore wind in Scotland to where demand is rising in the south of England.
Political context
McGarry referred to challenges the public put to National Grid about its plans for building new pylons, which include people asking “why can’t you put [transmission cables] underground? Why can’t you put it offshore?
“Trust me, as I’m sure many of you are aware, go out and do a public consultation when you’re running up close to a general election.”
He made the comments the day before Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced the general election which is now due to take place on 4 July.
“We’ve got a thriving democracy and it’s ultimately about chasing votes and that’s where things get very difficult indeed,” McGarry continued.
“Everybody knows what the national need is. Everyone knows that we’re not going to achieve net zero if do not have the connectivity and we do not build this stuff.
“Everybody knows that if we underground the lot, it’s going to cost six times more. If we find a way of putting it offshore it’s going to cost four times more.”
McGarry said he thinks a consensus needs to be reached.
“I think local communities are looking for that approach that says, ‘What’s in it for us? We understand this needs to be done, but how are we going to get involved in the supply chain? How are we going to be part of the skills revolution that we keep on saying you need to deliver this infrastructure? Are young people in the local area going to get upskilled to deliver all of this [development activity that] is going on in the energy sector?’
“We need to find mechanisms to do that because then people will feel involved. At the moment what we are told to do is to deliver policy. To deliver these public consultation exercises and then we are not answering the question, ‘What’s in it for us?’”
The government’s position
In a parliamentary debate in March 2024, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero parliamentary under-secretary of state Lord Callanan said: “National Policy Statement for Electricity Networks Infrastructure states, as other noble Lords also recognised, that ‘overhead lines should be the strong starting presumption for electricity networks developments in general’.
“However, in nationally designated landscapes, such as national parks or areas of outstanding natural beauty—for example, Dedham Vale, which my noble friend mentioned—‘the strong starting presumption will be that’ developers ‘should underground the relevant section of the line’.”
Lord Callanan also pointed out the “significant” environmental impact of undergrounding cables.
He said: “Installing underground cables requires significant engineering works, which not only prolongs the construction time compared to overhead lines but causes significant damage to the surrounding area.
“The breadth of land needed for trench cabling, for example, is around the width of a football pitch.”
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