[12 October] Stockport Mayor lends a hand to ‘pull’ National Grid cable

Having taken delivery of the 95 tonnes of cable at the end of August, the next milestone in the £20 million scheme has been to pull the cable through the underground ducts. During his visit, the Mayor experienced first-hand the challenges of installing an underground electricity cable. He joined the team pulling the cable through the underground ducts that National Grid installed since construction work started in November 2019. 

The Mayor said: “This is a significant project for the Stockport area and I’d like to thank National Grid and their contractors, Morgan Sindall, for their work to keep the lights on for the local communities, especially during such challenging times with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Seeing the work today has given me a glimpse ‘behind the scenes’ – it sounds simple, pulling a cable through a duct pipe, but I’ve now seen the huge amount of preparation that goes into it. It’s clearly been a complex job, but I think it’s proof that collaborative working – with Stockport Council, the local councillors, community and National Grid – has meant we’ll all be able to continue to charge our phones, cook our dinners and watch Britain’s Got Talent with minimal disruption!”

Commenting on the progress to date, National Grid project engineer, Kevin Harper, said: “National Grid has a unique position at the heart of Britain’s energy system and this project is crucial in helping to keep the lights on. This is a huge milestone in the project for us and we really appreciate the Mayor joining us to mark the occasion. We understand our work can be disruptive and we’re grateful to the Stockport communities and Stockport Council for their patience with us while we work in the area.”

It’s taken the project team more than 65,000 hours to dig 2.7km of trenches and install 13km of ducting across the Stockport area. It took Morgan Sindall a month to pull the cable through the ducts from three ‘joint bays’ across the route; in Heaton Norris Park, Higher Bury Street and off Green Lane.

For the latest project information visit the National Grid website www.nationalgridet.com/bredburycable

Anyone who has questions or would like to know more can contact National Grid’s Community Relations Team on Freephone 0800 073 1047, available daily from 7am to 7pm. 

Notes to editors

Photo 1 caption: Stockport Mayor, Councillor Dean Fitzpatrick, with the National Grid and Morgan Sindall project team

Photo 2 caption: Stockport Mayor, Councillor Dean Fitzpatrick, with (left to right): Damien Grimshaw, project supervisor, and Kevin Harper, project engineer, National Grid.

For press information: Helen Blake / 07790 824788