Balfour Beatty wins first phase of Skye transmission scheme

Balfour Beatty has been awarded the first phase of the £690mn Skye 132kV reinforcement project for Scottish & Southern Electricity Network (SSEN) Transmission.

The project is designed to ensure the supply of electricity to homes and businesses across the Hebrides and West Highlands.

The detailed design and development phase, valued at £32m, will see Balfour Beatty engineer solutions for a new 137km, 132kV double circuit overhead line between the existing Fort Augustus and Edinbane substations, as well as new sealing end compounds to link the overhead line to the underground electricity network. It will ultimately join the Isle of Skye and Western Isles to mainland Scotland.

Subject to planning approval, the full construction contract award is expected later in 2024 and main construction work should follow in early 2025. At project peak, Balfour Beatty will employ 650 people on the job.

Tony Wilson, managing director of Balfour Beatty’s Power Transmission and Distribution business said: “We have a long and proud history of working with SSEN Transmission. This most recent award is testament to our expertise and capability in delivering overhead lines and underground cabling works in complex and challenging environments.”

This latest award follows the company’s appointment to SSEN Transmission’s accelerated strategic transmission investment (ASTI) framework in August 2023 for which it started detailed development and design in early 2024.