Moving power lines

[paulbh]

I am looking to buy a plot of land to base my MTOSport on, the land has some power lines which could (and therefore will) get in way, there are 3 lines on top of each telegraph pole.

My question are has anyone had any experience at have the lines moved:

1. To the property boundary
2. Poles removed & lines buried

Cheers Paul

[macconnacher]

Poles are covered by Way Leave agreements between landowners and the power authorities so it may be tied up leaving you little scope for change in the near future. The power authorities both national grid and local distributors have some power so it might be difficult. However lots of money has been known to make it possible. It is not a cheap or simple matter to bury cables since being left in the air allows the cable size to be of a relatively small cross section compared with a buried cable and the maintenance is easy which is why in the USA even houses are supplied from power poles whereas this is rare in the UK.
Ask the current landowner for details of the "Way Leaves" agreements and contact the supplier whose name is likely to be on the poles. There should be a Way leaves department or officer who might be the best contact.

[macconnacher]

Poles are covered by Way Leave agreements between landowners and the power authorities so it may be tied up leaving you little scope for change in the near future. The power authorities both national grid and local distributors have some power so it might be difficult. However lots of money has been known to make it possible. It is not a cheap or simple matter to bury cables since being left in the air allows the cable size to be of a relatively small cross section compared with a buried cable and the maintenance is easy which is why in the USA even houses are supplied from power poles whereas this is rare in the UK.
Ask the current landowner for details of the "Way Leaves" agreements and contact the supplier whose name is likely to be on the poles. There should be a Way leaves department or officer who might be the best contact.

[tnowak]

It cost me £350 in 1998 to have a normal, domestic (240V), directly buried underground cable moved 10 feet at my home (non aviation requirement). The "3 cables on a telegraph pole" sounds like 11KV or 33KV, therefore will be very, very expensive to bury.
Tony Nowak

[C Rule]

In your Pre-purchase searches it is worth looking at the way the wayleaves are written . There are as I understand it two types of wayleaves one which pays an annual rent to place the poles on agricultural land etc and another where the annual charge has been bought out with a lump sum payment. The former may be terminated on notice the latter can't.

[Les James]

When establishing my airstrip in 1990 in Leicestershire, I requested East Midlands Electricity Board to remove 11 poles and approx 1200 yards of 11 KVA overhead line from my land. My argument was that the poles and wires were a hazard to aviation activities and therefore unreasonably restricted the use of my land. EMEB agreed to remove the poles and put the cables underground, they requested that I excavate the trenches and backfill them after cable laying, to which I readily agreed, there was no charge from EMEB, it took 2 days for them to complete their work. They even gave me the redundant poles ! Total cost to me was about £200 for the hire of a trenching machine with operator. I was advised by a friend who had wires removed to stress the unreasonable restriction they cause. The above shows it can be done. Good luck.

[paulbh]

Thanks for the comments and guidance, I think that I will try Les's approach first and if that fails follow the farming community way of getting it done. http://www.farmingforum.co.uk/forums/sh ... hp?t=56023

Cheers Paul

[Bill McCarthy]

Steel guy ropes have to be added to the poles where the line goes into and out of the ground as those would collapse under the pull stresses of the main line cables.