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National Grid: Electric Cables

Asked by Sir John HayesConservativeDepartment for Energy Security and Net ZeroTabled Answered 4 November 2024UIN 11157

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether (a) Ministers and (b) officials have held recent discussions with National Grid on the viability of using an underground cable system instead of pylons as part of the great grid upgrade.

Answered by Michael Shanks

The Government’s policy on undergrounding is set out in the energy National Policy Statement for electricity networks (EN-5), which sets a strong starting presumption of overhead lines, except in nationally designated landscapes, where undergrounding is the starting presumption.

Details of Ministers’ meetings with external individuals and organisations are published quarterly in arrears on GOV.UK

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