Balfour Beatty, the international infrastructure group, has been awarded contracts worth a total of £35 million by Scottish Hydro Electric (SHE) Transmission for the design and construction of the Bhlaraidh and Beinneun Wind Farm Connections Project near Fort Augustus, in Scotland.
Balfour Beatty will be responsible for the electrical transmission network connections to the two new wind farms. The scope of work includes the design and construction of a new substation, refurbishment or alterations of two existing substations, the connection to a fourth substation built by a developer, the design and installation of a new 7.5km 132kV underground cable system, and the refurbishment of 21km of 132kV overhead line. Combined, the two wind farms could power the equivalent of over 90,000 homes.
Main construction works are due to start in April 2016 with the new infrastructure programmed to be delivered in the spring of 2017. At its peak, the project will employ 120 people.
Balfour Beatty offers capability and technical expertise in cabling, overhead lines and substations, providing the range of technical support required to develop all of the solutions for the project. This unique range of capabilities and technical expertise reduces both cost and interface risk, offering a solution that provides value for the generator, network operator and consumer.
The two wind farms will feed renewable energy generated by wind power directly into the national grid network and will contribute towards the 2020 target for 100% of Scotland’s electricity and 11% of Scotland’s heat demand being generated by renewable sources1.
Stephen Donnelly, Project Manager for Balfour Beatty, said: “With a greater demand to connect renewable energy to the Grid, Balfour Beatty is ideally placed to build both the generation connections into the network and the transmission infrastructure. We are focussed on providing solutions to help ensure the future security of renewable energy supply across the UK, reducing carbon emissions and contributing to ‘keeping the lights on’. Utilising our unique ability within the industry of a single-source solution from design to build, we’re able to deliver maximum efficiency, a smooth running project and minimal disruption to the public".
Keith Inglis, Manager of Major Customer Connection Projects at SHE Transmission, said, “By awarding these contracts to Balfour Beatty we are enabling the next step forward for the connection of renewable energy. These works are being delivered to tight timescales and it is both challenging and exciting that SHE Transmission is introducing a new and innovative overhead line conductor to its network to help enable these connections.”
ENDS
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Antonia Walton
Balfour Beatty
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Notes to editors:
Balfour Beatty’s Power Transmission & Distribution teams work with regional, national and international electricity network owners and operators to provide technical engineering solutions.
With experience and expertise across the full spectrum of the electricity grid, including overhead lines, cable tunnels, substations and distribution networks, we deliver a range of proactive and reactive services which support a reliable and safe supply of power flowing to millions of homes and businesses around the world.
From scoping and feasibility, to design, construction and on-going maintenance, our in-house experts, flexible resources and industry-leading innovations support clients in the development of some of the UK’s most ambitious power transmission and distribution projects.
Current projects within our portfolio include the NEMO Link (www.nemo-link.com) - the fifth major interconnector into the UK which supports Europe’s ‘super grid’ and London Power Tunnels (www.londonpowertunnels.co.uk) - a new 32km electricity superhighway deep below the capital, which will help keep Londoners connected to safe and reliable electricity supplies
