Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) would like to thank everyone who attended its recent consultation event at Rothienorman Village Hall to meet the project team and share their thoughts on plans for a new transmission substation in the area.
This new substation, which was first granted planning permission in February 2012, is required to allow the connection of increased generation to the North East transmission network. Due to changing network requirements and to accommodate overhead line tie-ins with the substation, there have been minor changes to the proposed site layout, and so SSEN has taken the decision to submit a new planning application taking account of these changes. Additional related work will also see the local distribution network made more robust and resilient, and there will also be work carried out on the nearby overhead lines and underground cables.
The event, whichwas part of SSEN's pre-application public consultation and attended by over 50 members of the local community, provided an opportunity for stakeholders to learn more about the background to SSEN's planning application and to let the project team know their thoughts on topics ranging from construction traffic to what the finished substation will look like.
Speaking after the event, Kelly Scott, SSEN's Community Liaison Manager, said:
"This session was all about letting the local community know more about our planning application, and giving them the chance to ask any questions or discuss concerns they may have had. It was really encouraging to see so many people interested in what we are doing, and the detail, depth and volume of questions demonstrates there is a real appetite within the community to learn more about the substation plans."
"If anyone wasn't able to attend our event and would like to know more about the proposed substation, all the exhibition boards are now on our dedicated webpage, where there is also a feedback page for visitors to leave comments on our plans which will be carefully considered as we continue to develop the project."
For more information on the project, including the display materials from the event and feedback form, please visit:
https://www.ssen-transmission.co.uk/projects/rothienorman-substation/
The closing date for pre-application feedback is 27 July.