£1million power boost for Isle of Grain

UK Power Networks is installing new electricity cables on the Isle of Grain as part of a £1million investment.

The company will be installing 1.6km of new high voltage cables along Grain Road, plus 500metres of power lines across farmland as part of the project which is due to start on March 3.

Engineers are replacing an existing high voltage cable that is due for renewal. Work is due to finish in August to ensure reliable electricity supplies for homes and businesses for years to come.

Electricity supplies will not be affected by the scheme although roadworks will be needed and advance warning signs will be used at intervals along Grain Road to keep motorists informed.

Temporary traffic lights will be in place while a series of short trenches are excavated in the road to install a duct line into which new cables will be pulled and joined to the electricity network. The Grain Road excavations will be between Colemouth Creek bridge and the bend south of Wallend. The traffic lights will be manually controlled at the busiest times to help keep traffic flowing through the works.

A small tunnel will also be constructed to carry the new electricity cables underneath the railway line and this should have no impact on the public.

Colin Barden, UK Power Networks’ Head of Network Operations in the South East, said: “We are constantly investing in our network to improve the reliability of electricity supplies and reduce the likelihood and duration of power cuts in the future. As the electricity distributor throughout Kent we are replacing this section of cable to strengthen electricity supplies in the long-term following some cable faults in this area.

“The cables will be laid along the main road to the Isle of Grain. We have planned our work with care, closely consulting the local authorities to keep the impact on the local community to a minimum.”

This project is part of the £500 million that UK Power Networks is investing each year in new equipment to keep improving power supplies and cater for growing demand for electricity. The company delivers electricity across more than a quarter of Britain serving the South East, London and East of England.

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