Boscombe - Christchurch Network Investment

Our £12 million electricity network upgrade is underway. It will boost your power supplies by future-proofing the underground cables that carry electricity for homes and businesses in the Bournemouth and Christchurch areas.

Running until 2027, we are working to deliver a £12 million re-cabling scheme that will ensure a more reliable and efficient power supply, increasing the reliability of the Bournemouth-Christchurch electricity network for years to come.

What work is being delivered?

We will be installing new underground electricity cables to connect key substations in the area:

• Two will run from Christchurch Grid Substation to Southbourne Primary Substation.
• Two will run from Christchurch Primary Substation to Boscombe East Primary Substation.

This work will involve digging approximately 5.8 kilometres of trenches to lay the new cables. For part of the route, we will be using a Horizontal Directional Drill (HDD). Read more about this method for laying cables below.

Infrastructure Upgrades:

• The connection at Southbourne Primary Substation will be directly linked to a transformer, which will help manage the flow of electricity.
• We will remove outdated equipment, including an old 33,000-volt switchboard and oil-filled cables, once the new cables are operational.

Community Benefits:

• Improved reliability and efficiency of your electricity supply.
• Upgraded infrastructure to support future energy needs.

This project represents a significant step forward in modernising your local power network, ensuring that homes and businesses receive an even more stable and dependable electricity supply.

Works Programme

Our Cable Route

First Phase: Installing Ducts

We have now completed the first phase of these works detailed above, this involved installing 7km of ducts that will contain our new cables.

Second Phase: Installing Cables

The second phase of our work will see us return to connect the cables to our electricity network. To do this, we will dig smaller trenches at intervals along the cable route and pull the cables through the ducts to join them together.

When we close a road, a temporary diversion route will be provided. The diversion route must be suitable for all diverted traffic and be of a similar grade of carriageway. Road signage will direct traffic to use the shortest-available route which meets these requirements.

• Road Closures: Roads will be closed where necessary to ensure the safety of both workers and the public.
• Overnight Closures: Roads under construction will remain closed overnight but local access will be maintained.
• Emergency Services: Full details of road closures are shared with emergency services to minimise disruption.
• Refuse Collection: There will be no impact to local refuse collection services, and our site team will be happy to answer any questions you might have about access during the closures.

We thank you for your patience and cooperation as we complete our works as safely and quickly as possible. Please watch this video to learn more:

Environmental and Road Conditions

Our delivery partner, Aureos, has conducted a number of surveys to ensure that the impact of our work will be kept to a minimum along the full route.

Our team has worked closely with the local council highways authority to ensure that we are working collaboratively with other utility companies, while minimising disruption to local traffic flow wherever possible.

Keeping in touch

We understand these works may cause some disruption and noise, but we will follow industry best practices to ensure our contractors do everything they can to minimise any inconvenience.

We will write in sequence to residents and businesses on each road that is affected, to ensure that residents and businesses are kept up-to-date with the progress of our work and the traffic management measures we will have in place.

We will be holding community drop-in events at key points throughout the project; please look out for dates on our Events page.

Good to know

There are no planned power supply interruptions (PSIs) as part of this work.