Latest news with #pylons
BBC News
27-05-2025
- General
- BBC News
National Grid urged to spare oak tree during pylon works
National Grid has been asked to spare a 300-year-old oak tree threatened by plans to build pylons across oak, known as Henry by residents in Rivenhall, and several smaller trees lie on the planned 114-mile (183km) route between Norwich and councillor James Abbott said nature faced a "very significant threat" in the area of Braintree he National Grid said it was yet to make a final decision about how it would route pylons through Rivenhall. "We continue to make changes to the proposals following the feedback received and our own surveys," a spokesman added. Campaigners feared vast gantries would be installed around Henry while the 50m-high (164ft) pylons were built in Church asked National Grid to adjust the route so the historical tree could be spared the this year, National Grid revealed "minor adjustments and tweaks" would be made to the locations of about 30 sites following feedback. 'Crass solution' Abbott said people should also consider the impact of access roads needed to build the pylons."It's the access roads that pose a very significant threat to those trees and also the clearance swathes," he opposing the pylons plan were dealt a blow in April when a report found they were cheaper than burying cables underground or at said he thought it was a "crass solution" to harnessing more renewable Grid stressed it was listening to communities and more than 13,000 pieces of feedback it received over the wider plan. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Miliband considers fewer pylons amid net zero backlash
Ed Miliband is considering scaling back plans to erect thousands of pylons across the countryside to reach net zero. The Energy Secretary has ordered electricity grid planners to examine whether fewer overhead wires would be required throughout the countryside if the power market were broken up, The Telegraph understands. Sir Keir Starmer previously argued that building new pylons in rural areas was a necessary step to bring down the cost of electricity as part of the drive to reach net zero emissions by 2050. However, the Government has already diluted other green policies, including a ban on new non-electric cars by 2030, amid a growing backlash from voters, unions and Labour MPs. The decision to commission a government study comes as Labour faces pressure in rural areas from Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, which has accused the Government of spoiling swathes of countryside with a 'spider's web' of pylons and cables. In Lincolnshire, where Reform has seized control of the local mayoralty and the county council in May's local elections, Mr Farage and his deputy, Richard Tice, have vowed to wage legal warfare against planned green energy projects. Mr Tice warned ministers last week: 'We will attack, we will hinder, we will delay, we will obstruct, we will put every hurdle in your way. It's going to cost you a fortune, and you're not going to win.' The National Energy System Operator (Neso) has estimated that £60bn worth of upgrades are needed across the electricity network under Labour's plan for a clean power system, including 4,000 miles of new undersea cables and another 1,000 miles of overland power lines. This is expected to add up to £30 a year to consumer bills. Neso has now been told to examine whether the scope of this work can be dramatically cut by switching to a regional, or so-called zonal, electricity pricing system. This would see households pay different prices for electricity based on supply and demand in their area, in an effort to encourage investment in green power near to where it is needed most. Zonal pricing supporters say this would cut down the distance between power stations and homes and businesses, lessening the need for cables spanning the country, while also lowering the cost of net zero as fewer cables would be needed. Mr Miliband is understood to have already been shown an analysis by private sector consultants that claimed zonal pricing would result in savings of 'tens of billions of pounds' and almost 2,000 fewer miles of wires. A Neso spokesman did not deny it was looking at the issue, adding that the quango 'continues to provide advice to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero on a range of topics including on the review of electricity market arrangements'. Ministers have previously vowed to 'back the builders, not the blockers', with Sir Keir Starmer telling the public to expect more pylons as a 'trade-off' for cheaper power. However, the prospect of slashing the number of pylons needed to reach Labour's goal would allow Mr Miliband to claim he was reducing both the impact on rural areas and the cost to bill payers. Whether or not Britain should break-up its electricity market and shift to zonal pricing has become the subject of a fierce battle within the energy industry. Opponents including wind farm owners Scottish Power and SSE have warned Mr Miliband that the reforms risk plunging their investment plans into uncertainty and endangering his target to have a clean power system by 2030. But advocates including Octopus Energy, the country's biggest gas and electricity supplier, claim it would cut prices for all households overall. Under the current national electricity pricing system, power is sold for the same price everywhere on the wholesale market. However, experts say the price is inflated by bottlenecks in the grid, which lead to wind farms being paid to switch off in one part of the country and a gas plant fired up in another – at great expense. This has cost households and businesses £437m so far this year already, or about £3.2m per day, according to data compiled by the Wasted Wind website. Advocates of zonal pricing say it would send wholesale prices plummeting in areas such as Scotland, where wind power is abundant, although it would also risk higher prices in London and the South East. The Telegraph previously revealed that officials have advised Mr Miliband to back the reform, although sources close to the Energy Secretary have insisted he has yet to make up his own mind on the matter. He is expected to make a decision within weeks, although the study by Neso raises the prospect of delays. A spokesman for the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said: 'In an unstable world, the only way to guarantee our energy security and protect consumers from future energy price shocks is by moving towards homegrown power. 'We are considering reforms to Britain's electricity market arrangements, ensuring that these focus on protecting bill payers and encouraging investment. 'We will provide an update in due course.' Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Telegraph
17-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Miliband considers fewer pylons amid net zero backlash
Ed Miliband is considering scaling back plans to erect thousands of pylons across the countryside to reach net zero. The Energy Secretary has ordered electricity grid planners to examine whether fewer overhead wires would be required throughout the countryside if the power market was broken up, the Telegraph understands. Sir Keir Starmer previously argued that building new pylons in rural areas was a necessary step to bring down the cost of electricity as part of the drive to reach net zero emissions by 2050. However, the Government has already diluted other green policies, including a ban on new non-electric cars by 2030, amid a growing backlash from voters, unions and Labour MPs. The decision to commission a government study comes as Labour faces pressure in rural areas from Nigel Farage's Reform UK party, which has accused the Government of spoiling swathes of countryside with a 'spider's web' of pylons and cables. In Lincolnshire, where Reform has seized control of the local mayoralty and the county council in May's local elections, Mr Farage and his deputy, Richard Tice, have vowed to wage legal warfare against planned green energy projects. Mr Tice warned ministers last week: 'We will attack, we will hinder, we will delay, we will obstruct, we will put every hurdle in your way. It's going to cost you a fortune, and you're not going to win.' The National Energy System Operator (Neso) has estimated that £60bn worth of upgrades are needed across the electricity network under Labour's plan for a clean power system, including 4,000 miles of new undersea cables and another 1,000 miles of overland power lines. This is expected to add up to £30 a year to consumer bills.
BBC News
13-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
More electricity pylons proposed for Lincolnshire
Plans for more electricity pylons in Lincolnshire have been Grid wants to run overhead power lines from a proposed substation at Weston Marsh, near Spalding, to a connection point 37 miles (60km) away in eastern has also unveiled plans for a "primarily underground" electricity cable, Eastern Greenlink 5 (EGL5), to take power from Scottish windfarms to Lincolnshire. A spokesperson said it was aiming to "upgrade and reinforce" the electricity network and that its latest pylons plan was at "the very early stages". The proposal follows an earlier plan for 87 miles (140km) of pylons between Grimsby and Walpole, just over the Norfolk border, which is opposed by Lincolnshire County of the new 37-mile proposal would use existing a public consultation has opened on the plans for EGL5 as well as for EGL3 and EGL4, which would all carry power from Scotland to Stokoe, of National Grid, said they "would help us to make the most of offshore wind, reducing our reliance on expensive imported fossil fuels".National Grid said each cable would carry enough power for two million proposal is to run the three Eastern Greenlinks along the seabed before bringing them ashore at Anderby Creek, near Skegness. The cables would then run underground. National Grid said EGL5 would connect to a new converter station near Alford, at either Bilsby or proposals for a converter and switching stations at Bilsby and a proposed underground power line will not be pursued. Mr Stokoe said the plans were "critical to building the electricity infrastructure the UK needs for secure, independent and affordable energy".But campaigners continue to call for a halt to such projects in Lincolnshire. Consultation events for the EGL3, 4 and 5 plans include public meetings at Huttoft Village Hall on 22 May and at Alford Corn Exchange on 31 May, both between 14:00 and 19:00 National Grid is planning to hold public consultations on its Weston Marsh pylons proposal in June.
Daily Mail
09-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Halt the march of the pylons! The Furious communities desperate to protect their homes and livelihoods as they take action to stop Ed Miliband's latest bid to despoil the countryside
The village of Ardleigh in Essex doesn't look like a battlefield. The sun is glinting off the clear waters of its reservoir, the birds are in full song and a canopy of oaks is closing over the single-track lanes. But this community is on the front line of a war. If Ed Miliband and National Grid get their way, Ardleigh will soon be scarred by a line of 160ft electricity pylons on one side and a 400ft-wide trench for cables on the other. No fewer than three electricity substations are to be built in this one parish – which is mentioned in the Domesday Book – along with an enormous 'interconnector', a four-storey plant that enables the UK to export and import electricity to and from continental Europe. As for those idyllic lanes, currently waist-high with cow parsley, they'll see about 550 heavy goods vehicles driving down them every day as construction starts on this project – part of what National Grid is styling Britain's 'Great Grid Upgrade'. Under the £16 billion scheme, launched in April 2023, 625 miles of 'pylon highways' will be laid stretching from Grimsby in Lincolnshire to Walpole, near King's Lynn in Norfolk. There's also Chesterfield to Willington in Derbyshire and a stretch from East Yorkshire to High Marnham, Nottinghamshire. The line threatening Ardleigh runs from Norwich to Tilbury in Essex. There are 17 major projects like these – plus additional plans by green energy companies to build miles and miles of smaller pylons connected to onshore wind farms, such as those atop mid Wales's gusty hills. In Ardleigh, the residents are furious. Jayne and Bruce Marshall could lose 80 per cent of their farmland. For Gilly and Paul Whittle, it means their £1.5 million house is likely to be halved in value, if it can be sold at all. The local vineyard, with its fashionable Skylark café, will have a pylon slap-bang in the middle of a view which is today positively Provencal. And Benson's Stud might have to close its doors, unable to give its multi-million-pound racehorses the peace and quiet they need. Could this, in turn, affect the string of Royal mounts stabled by the King at nearby Newmarket? Stud owner Ben Wallis is too discreet to say. What's clear is that, unless the 15th-century church of St Mary (itself about to be encircled by a forest of pylons) has a 21st-century miracle to offer, Ardleigh is going to be changed for ever: collateral damage in the country's race for renewables and the controversial net zero ambitions of Mr Miliband, the dogmatic energy secretary. Not that the village is going down without a fight. Nor are the hundreds of communities elsewhere in England, Scotland and Wales now threatened by the march of the pylons. Around the country, an anger is growing, the like of which have not been seen since the campaign against HS2, the wildly expensive high-speed rail link that threatens to wreak similar devastation on Britain's dwindling green spaces. In Westminster, the row is now at boiling point. Earlier this month, Sir Tony Blair publicly turned on Mr Miliband and his radical eco-schemes – describing net zero as 'doomed to fail'. Labour-backing union barons of GMB and Unite are similarly pessimistic. Meanwhile, Rosie Pearson, founder of the Essex Suffolk Norfolk Pylons action group, says: 'Ed Miliband is an ideologue, a zealot. He has a ridiculous political deadline to meet and he doesn't care how it's achieved.' 'The last government was listening, this one isn't. There's no interest in doing things in a way that means the upgrade to our energy infrastructure has lower community impact, lower social impact and less natural capital [countryside] impact – and actually lower bills as well.' Mr Miliband has labelled such criticism 'old nonsense and lies', calling the people who oppose him 'obstructionists'. Ardleigh resident Gilly, 66, begs to differ. She says: 'I'm not a Nimby or a nay-sayer as Keir Starmer's government would have everyone believe. Nobody disputes the need for more electricity. But we are rushing into these pylon plans for the sake of a political deadline.' She and her husband Paul, 75, have lived in their Grade II-listed home for 37 years. They were about to downsize when it became clear that soon four or five pylons would tower over their back garden. 'We had a surveyor out for an informal chat last week. He advised that the value of our house would be cut by at least a third, probably in half, if anyone would buy it at all. I mean, why would you?' Recent research from property consultancy Allsop showed a so-called 'pylon penalty' on the value of homes as far as 500 yards from a power line. In Birmingham, pylon-blighted houses were selling for 23 per cent less than the city average. For country properties, the damage is even worse, making a mockery of Mr Miliband's pledge to give householders near his beloved new infrastructure a derisory £250 off their bills per year. Two miles down the road from Gilly and Paul's house in Ardleigh lies a vineyard newly cultivated by Robert Blyth, 42, and his sister Rosie Forshaw, 44. In 2016, the siblings, who run their family farm diversified into wine, turning ten acres of their land over to Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay grapes. They grow enough for 30,000 bottles a year, sold under the Prettyfields label. Ironically, their vineyard was named after the adjacent Pretty Field, which will soon host another pylon – one of four or five on the family's land. Robert's worries are manifold: how to farm around the pylons; damage done to the soil; the destruction of mature oaks and the mixed hedgerows which are home to stoats and badgers, red kites, bitterns and bats. 'As for the vineyard, what's an industrial construction project going to do to soft fruit?' he asks. We have met in the Skylark café, which overlooks their grapes. The thriving business is tenanted by Matt Wilsher who has spent the past three years turning this bucolic spot into a commercial enterprise: it's a farm shop, microbrewery and community hub. 'National Grid don't care about me and whether my business can survive this,' says Matt. 'I am angry, bitter and afraid for the future. If they would only look at my business and all the others like it then it would give a much clearer idea of the true cost.' Many would prefer the electricity cables necessary for the grid upgrade to be buried (known as 'undergrounding'). But National Grid maintains that this can be five to ten times more expensive than stringing them up on pylons. Such figures are disputed by campaigners who say the company fails to account for the cost to homes, tourism, agriculture, landscapes and rural enterprises. To be clear, no one disputes that Britain needs more electricity. In the UK, demand is predicted to rise by 50 per cent in the next five years and to double in the next 25. That's a lot of wind and solar energy to plug into a grid largely developed in the last century, created to serve Britain's coal-fired power stations, not windfarms in the North or Irish Seas. Last month, five Welsh farmers involved in a court battle to stop the pylons in their local area surrendered in the face of legal fees starting at £30,000 each and the risk of a criminal record. 'We were screwed,' said Wynne Jenkins, 71 of Llanarthney in Carmarthenshire. There were slow hand-claps and shouts of 'Shame on you!' as energy executives and their expensive legal teams filed into Llanelli Magistrates Court to fight the farmers. In Westminster, Mr Miliband is facing similarly furious opposition. A growing army of critics believe his plans are wrong-headed, threatening to turn the UK into 'Pylon Island'. Moreover, they say the sums don't add up. Last year an official report into the transmission system in East Anglia concluded that burying cables could prove £600 million cheaper than erecting pylons on the Norwich to Tilbury route. The caveat was that, even if it started now, National Grid would have to wait until 2034 for the project, meaning the Government would miss its arbitrary 2030 deadline for 'decarbonising' the grid. Shadow Defence Secretary and South Suffolk MP James Cartlidge says: 'The report shows that you can wait until 2034 and still have what is a very competitively priced option that doesn't lead to permanent damage to the countryside.' Ardleigh's own MP, Tory Sir Bernard Jenkin, couldn't agree more, asking why cables have to run above or below fields in the first place. Instead, he insists, they could be run offshore. 'In this country, we are lucky to have the seabed as an alternative. Let's use it!' he demands. But while Mr Miliband remains at the helm of Britain's energy policy, it seems likely that work on the Ardleigh section of the Great Grid Upgrade will break ground in 2027 as planned. 'We're cannon fodder,' says Ben Wallis of Benson's Stud. 'The Government has no clue about the damage it will do to the rural ecosystem. About 25 per cent of my land will be affected and that directly impacts on me and my son Charlie.' He doesn't know what the future holds for him. Nor is there much confidence over at Spindles Farm. 'It's our job to feed people,' says 62-year-old Jayne Marshall. 'We've spent our lives doing it. 'Given the amount of conflict in the world, Britain's food security is dire and this is no time to be hurrying towards net zero. This could be the end for us.' We are speaking in the orchard where she grows Golden and Red Delicious and Bramley apples. In the distance there's an alder hedge where red kites perch, oaks that are home to a pair of barn owls and, nearby, a meadow seeded with wildflowers to nourish turtle doves. The scene exemplifies how Ardleigh got its name – it comes from the old English 'leah' meaning clearing. It's still rustic. For now. But another five years spent on this Government's planned trajectory and it won't be, not with a 680-acre land-grab for pylons and substations, plus the interconnector hooking it all up to Germany. 'There are better ways of transmitting and distributing electricity,' sighs Dr Jonathan Dean from The Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales. 'But the better ways are being ignored. And we're still not asking the real question which is this: what is a price worth paying?'
