27 Nov 2020

£1.2m East Lancashire power network project complete

Work has completed on the £1.2m power network upgrade in an East Lancashire town.

Three months ahead of schedule, engineers from Electricity North West have concluded phase two of its project at Hareholme, Rawtenstall.

The region’s power network operator started work back in April and have now replaced the eight underground electricity cables stretching 2km from Bacup Road to Waterfoot.

Dave Kenneford, Electricity North West’s project manager for the work in Rawtenstall, said: “We’re delighted to bring a close to phase two of our Rawtenstall project.

“Initially, we started later than planned but given the circumstances and the lockdowns, we’ve been able to take advantage of quieter roads meaning we’ve finished three months ahead of schedule.

“Despite the quieter roads, it was still a complex project but one that has certainly been a major success.

“We’ve invested a huge amount of money and residents in the area will benefit for many years to come.”

Last year, Electricity North West completed phase one of the project investing £1m upgrading nine underground electricity cables from Bacup Road to Lower Cloughfold.

With phase two now completed, it means thousands of customers will benefit from the £2.2m investment which saw 3.6km of underground electricity cables replaced.

“We’ve been in Rawtenstall for two years now after we brought forward investment following a series of power cuts,” added Dave. “I’d like to thank residents and businesses for their patience and understanding while we carried out this essential work to keep the area powered well into the future.”

Jake Berry, MP for Rawtenstall, said: “Its excellent to see that phase two of Electricity North West’s project in Rawtenstall is now complete.
“Electricity North West have invested more than £2m upgrading the power network after recognising a number of customers were started to be impacted by power cuts.

“Our reliance on electricity is greater than ever and the people of Rawtenstall will benefit from a reinforced power network for many years to come.”

For more information about the project, please visit www.enwl.co.uk/rawtenstall.