Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) is investing £520,000 to boost the resilience and strength of the power supply for residents and business owners in a Hampshire Village.

Already underway, the programme of works in the village of Middle Wallop is scheduled for completion later this month, and is being carried out to keep the infrastructure supplying the local community resilient and secure now and for years to come.

The month long upgrade project predominantly involves the replacement of poles and equipment, such as conductors, transformers and switch gear, on the overhead network, along with a significant rebuild of the overhead cables; all designed to provide a robust power supply that will stand up to the adverse weather of the winter months and accommodate the current and future needs of the villagers.

John O'Reilly is SSEN's Project Planner for the Middle Wallop upgrade. He said:

"We're delighted to be investing in these local works to ensure the residents of Middle Wallop have a power supply that not only suits their requirements now, but will serve the village long into the future."

"These works are part of our commitment to taking a "you said, we did" approach to investing in our vital infrastructure and will also contribute to helping Hampshire achieve its net-zero ambitions; meaning that as more of our customers turn to using electric vehicles, they have a supply and infrastructure that's fit for purpose."

There are no further Planned Service Interruptions (PSI) for the remainder of these works, but SSEN is aware that customers may have concerns relating to power cuts as we head into the winter months. To assist with this SSEN has extended its Priority Services Register (PSR) to those who are categorised at 'high risk' and 'extremely high risk' of severe illness from coronavirus, so they are now eligible to sign up for additional support through the free, tailored service.

Customers are also eligible for SSEN's Priority Services Register if they:

  • Are deaf or hard of hearing
  • Have a disability
  • Live with children under five
  • Are blind or partially sighted
  • Have a chronic illness
  • Use medical equipment/aid reliant on electricity
  • Are over 60
  • Would benefit from PSR services for any other reason, even if temporarily

To find out more, please go to the Priority Services Register page on our website: www.ssen.co.uk/psr, where SSEN's multi-language PSR leaflets can also be accessed and downloaded.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) expects electricity demand to double by 2050 as more and more customers shift to electric vehicles (EV) and heating. SSEN is working to understand the ambitions of the communities it serves, and to enable this transition. SSEN has published Accelerating a Green Recovery setting out ten measures for the Government to ensure no communities are left behind in the transition to net zero carbon emissions.