North Shropshire towns to get £18m boost to power supply
An £18 million upgrade which will increase the electricity capacity of towns across north Shropshire will go ahead.
Bosses from Scottish Power Energy Networks announced they had received Ofgem approval for the reinforcement works to benefit Oswestry, Wem and Whitchurch which is expected to be completed by 2022.
It will increase capacity by up to 20 per cent within the next seven years.
The news was revealed at a meeting of Whitchurch Town Council last night, when energy experts said that the upgrade would provide the equivalent capacity for 50,000 homes.
They also put to bed the myth that there is not enough supply of electricity in the Whitchurch area, despite claims it has caused businesses to move out.
Rachel Shorney, engineering specialist at SPEN, said: "We have had the approval for the upgrade and are now working on a more detailed plan and hope to have that by the end of summer.
"The benefit for this project will be in Oswestry, Wem and Whitchurch and will increase the existing network capacity by around 20 per cent – the equivalent to the capacity for another 50,000 homes."
The plans have been anticipated for months after an initial presentation last year, but bosses said they had to wait for Ofgem approval before moving any further.
Ms Shorney said claims about a lack of power in Whitchurch were simply not true. She said: "There is no problem with existing supply within the Whitchurch area. There is enough capacity for all of the proposed developments within the Whitchurch SAMDev plan."
SPEN explained that there will also be more capacity available once phase one of reinforcement works had been completed – a stage which is being carried out ahead of the £18 million wider upgrade.
