It is with enormous pride that we’ve announced this week that after over 10 years of hard work and commitment we have completed construction of our section of the Beauly-Denny overhead line, between Beauly and the Wharry Burn near Dunblane.
Development and construction of the 200km section of overhead line has been an enormous undertaking for those responsible for delivering the project. The replacement line is a real feat of engineering and I would like to thank the numerous people that have been involved in the project over the years. At its peak we had a team of more than 1,500 people who worked on the design and build of the 539 steel towers.
The new line, which reinforces the transmission network in the north of Scotland, has been constructed using an incredible amount of materials, including:
- Over 20,000 tonnes of steel; the equivalent weight of two CalMac Ullapool to Stornoway ferries
- 2,600km of aluminium conductor – enough to run from Perth to Rome;
- 67,000 cubic meters of concrete – enough to fill 27 Olympic swimming pools;
- More than 4 million nuts and bolts – a million more than the number of rivets on the Eiffel Tower;
- Installation and removal of 250km of access tracks – equivalent of three times the length of the M8 motorway; and
- The construction of the transmission tower with the highest elevation in the UK, built at 2526ft above sea level on the Corrieyairack Pass.
The replacement Beauly-Denny line is one of the most important steps in securing the future of Scotland’s electrical network. The transmission network in the north of Scotland was widely developed from the 1940s onwards by The North of Scotland Hydro Electric-Board and has successfully kept the lights on for over half a century. And the work we have done to replace and upgrade the transmission network will ensure the lights stay on for generations to come.
The need for the Beauly-Denny project was identified over ten years ago when it was recognised that the old 132kV line between Beauly and Denny was the weakest circuit on the transmission network and was therefore a limiting factor in the transfer of electricity. Rebuilding this circuit with the replacement, higher capacity line was therefore the logical and economic reinforcement to release capacity across the transmission system and it has been patiently developed and constructed to the highest industry standards in conjunction with our principal contractor, Balfour Beatty. It has contributed more than £100 million to the Scottish economy and supported the full time equivalent of 1,500 jobs, including direct employment within local communities.
By the end of 2015, as a direct result of the Beauly-Denny project, 30 individual renewable developments across the north of Scotland will have progressed to completion, totalling over 700MW of new renewable generation. As a result of this the total level of generation either connected to the transmission system or currently under construction is over 4GW which is already far greater than could have been accommodated on transmission network if the Beauly-Denny line had not been upgraded.
Looking to the future, there is a further 8GW of renewable generation contracted to connect to the SHE Transmission network. Even if only a fraction of this materialises, and over 3GW has been granted consent, further reinforcement of the SHE Transmission network beyond Beauly-Denny will be needed. Consequently the Beauly-Denny project has been a critical reinforcement to our network and has facilitated a substantial growth in renewable generation in the north of Scotland where renewable energy resource is abundant and in support of the government targets on CO2 emissions.
The replacement line has been constructed using a new steel lattice tower design which was designed and tested by Balfour Beatty to stand up to the Scottish elements. The line has already ‘passed the test’ having been battered by hurricane force winds along with snow and ice during the past two winters with no structural issues.
As part of the project we have also invested over £100 million at five substation locations along the route of the replacement line. We have constructed two new substations at Braco and Tummel Bridge and significantly developed existing substations at Beauly, Fasnakyle and Fort Augustus. This work will strengthen the network and the electricity supply to communities throughout the north of Scotland.
We are well advanced with the dismantling and reinstatement of the original 132kV line and expect this package of works to be completed during 2016. Construction teams are also working to finalise the remaining wirescape rationalisation projects at Beauly and in the Cairngorms National Park, we expect these to be completed in early 2016.
The 220km Beauly-Denny 400kV overhead line is programmed to be fully energised between Beauly and Denny during November 2015 once Scottish Power Transmission has completed its section of the line.