Tuesday, June 24, 2025

County Council demands answers from National Grid about pylon plan costs

National Grid is being pressured by Lincolnshire County Council’s legal department to share the data used to justify its claim that 400 pylons running through Lincolnshire are cheaper than seabed cabling.

The council believes the costing for the Grid’s proposal for pylons and substations across 80 miles of productive farmland between Grimsby and Walpole are fundamentally flawed.

Officers have already requested official costings twice and have been ignored by the Grid, which has cited commercial sensitivities.

The council, which is supportive of the need to route offshore renewables to UK communities to achieve net zero, believes the Grid’s ‘value for money’ claims may be flawed on the following grounds:

  • They are deliberately using out of date costings to justify pylons over seabed cabling.
  • They are ignoring indirect costs like the compensation they would need to pay to land and property owners, the extra infrastructure needed to allow for the maintenance of the network and the compensation that councils would claim for loss of tourism.
  • They have not considered other alternatives like investing in existing pylon networks to boost their capacity.

The council has formally requested a response from the Grid on these points by 29 October, ahead of official consultations planned for spring next year.

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.

“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.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our news site - please take a moment to read this important message:

As you know, our aim is to bring you, the reader, an editorially led news site and magazine but journalism costs money and we rely on advertising, print and digital revenues to help to support them.

With the Covid-19 pandemic having a major impact on our industry as a whole, the advertising revenues we normally receive, which helps us cover the cost of our journalists and this website, have been drastically affected.

As such we need your help. If you can support our news sites/magazines with either a small donation of even £1, or a subscription to our magazine, which costs just £27.55 per year, (inc p&P and mailed direct to your door) your generosity will help us weather the storm and continue in our quest to deliver quality journalism.

As a subscriber, you will have unlimited access to our web site and magazine. You'll also be offered VIP invitations to our events, preferential rates to all our awards and get access to exclusive newsletters and content.

Just click here to subscribe and in the meantime may I wish you the very best.

Advertisment












Latest posts

Celebration of marine life and conservation comes to Sandilands

  A Whale of a Day will return for another free family day out on Friday 25 July, bringing fun, education, and environmental awareness for...

Flags to be raised at Lincolnshire hospitals to honour organ donors

Flags will be raised at Lincolnshire’s hospitals to honour those who have helped save the lives of others through organ donation. The pink organ donation...

Cash boost to help North Lincolnshire residents celebrate heritage and culture

North Lincolnshire residents are set to benefit from a new fund helping launch dozens of community-led projects celebrating their heritage and culture, whether bringing...

Crowds flock to Skegness beach but leave litter behind

A wave of sunshine brought over 5,000 people to Skegness beach on the hottest and longest day of the year, leaving behind piles of...

Night shelter may reopen in Grantham as tent encampments grow

With tents now a common sight in Grantham’s parks and public spaces, South Kesteven District Council is considering reopening a temporary night shelter to...

By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. more information

The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.

Close