Northern Powergrid continues with £250,000 investment to upgrade Staithes’ power network

Northern Powergrid has announced that the next phase of its GBP250,000 investment programme to improve the reliability and resilience of the electricity network in Staithes will begin early in the new year.

Northern Powergrid Engineers working in the street

The first phase of the investment programme was carried out during April/May 2023 and the next phase is to run from Monday January 15 until the around the end of April 2024, with the programme focusing on replacing several sections of existing high voltage underground electricity cables dating back to the 1970s, with more modern and sustainable equipment. The new equipment is capable of meeting the existing demand for electricity, as well as any future increase in demand as the population grows and people become more reliant on electricity to power their businesses, heat their homes and charge electric vehicles. The work is being carried out by O’Connor Utilities (OCU) on Northern Powergrid’s behalf and involves excavating in the roadway and/or footpath to install new electricity cables along Mount Pleasant, Darlington Terrace, Browns Terrace, a section of High Street, Bells Bank and Beckside.

Some sections of footpath and roadway will need to be closed while the work is carried out, with the sections of work on High Street scheduled for completion before the busy Easter period. To further minimise disruption, working hours will be restricted to weekdays from approximately 8am until 4pm. Pedestrian access into the village will be maintained and there will be full vehicle access for residents, businesses and emergency services at all times.

Towards the end of each section of work, the team will switch over each individual property from the old network to the new one and this will require a short power cut. Northern Powergrid will work with each home and business to arrange the best time to do this. Northern Powergrid is committed to keeping local people informed and is also notifying local councillors and parish councillors, as well as writing to everyone directly affected to let them know the date that work will take place in their immediate vicinity.

Amanda White, Customer Service Manager for Northern Powergrid’s North Yorkshire region said: “This is an essential programme of investment work that will ensure Staithes has the reliable power supply it needs, both now and in the future. “That said, we know that, in a location like Staithes, our work can be disruptive which is why we’re doing as much as we can to avoid busy periods, maintain access and keep the local community informed about what we’re doing and when. “With this in mind, we encourage anyone who’d like to find out more about this work to drop in and meet us in person at the St Peter’s Centre on Thursday December 14 2023.”

The Northern Powergrid/OCU team will be at The St Peter’s Centre, Church Street, Staithes from 4pm until 6pm on Thursday December 14 2023.