Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), operating as Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission plc under licence, has submitted a Section 37 planning application to the Scottish Government to replace the overhead lines and steel towers that have delivered a safe and reliable supply of electricity to the Kintyre Peninsula for the last 60 years.

The existing towers that run from Inveraray to Crossaig are approaching the end of their operational life and since 2014, SSEN has been working with the local community, landowners, statutory authorities and specialist consultants to develop its proposals to replace this critical national infrastructure.

Pre-application consultation events were hosted in Inveraray, Ardrishaig, Tarbert, Skipness and Carradale in September last year and provided interested parties with the opportunity to review and comment on the preferred alignment of the new infrastructure.

The main elements of SSEN's proposal are:

  • Construction of a new 275kV overhead line, initially operated at 132kV between Inveraray and Crossaig.
  • Decommissioning and removal of the existing 132kV transmission line between Inveraray and Crossaig.
  • Extend the existing connection from Port Ann to the new overhead line.

As well as maintaining a safe and reliable supply of electricity across the region, this upgrade will also help facilitate the increase in demand for connections to SSEN's transmission network following the growth in renewable energy across the region, helping facilitate the transition to a low carbon economy.

SSEN Project Manager, Ian Clark, explains more:

"Our proposals consider a wide range of factors, including feedback from consultations, feedback from directly affected landowners and also the environmental and engineering assessments that have been carried out, and we are confident that our proposals have reached an optimum balance between these aspects."

"As a responsible developer, we believe that it is important to seek public opinion on our proposals and take that feedback into consideration when developing our projects. The consultation events last September marked the third round of public engagement events held for this project since October 2014, and I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time to comment so far."Further information regarding the Inveraray - Crossaig project can be obtained from the dedicated project webpage: http://www.ssen-transmission.co.uk/projects/inveraray-crossaig/"

Any representations to the application may be submitted via the Energy Consents Unit website at www.energyconsents.scot/Register.aspx; by email to The Scottish Government, Energy Consents Unit mailbox at representationsgov.scot or by post, to The Scottish Government, Energy Consents Unit, 4th Floor, 5 Atlantic Quay, 150 Broomielaw, Glasgow, G2 8LU, identifying the proposal and specifying the grounds for representation.