Hirwaun- Aberpergwm 33kV Re-routing

Expansion of an opencast coal mine near the village of Hirwaun in South Wales, necessitated re-routing of two 33kV OHLs which passed over the area of the planned expansion. A few spans of the existing lines were located within a wildlife and wooded conservation area, designated as such by the mine operator. The majority of the replacement OHLs were within the mine area, on ground that had been exhausted of coal extraction, before passing into woodland and open grassland.

NorPower was contracted to build the two new lines, running in parallel, and each consisting of 38 H-poles strung with 175 mm² AAAC ‘ELM’ conductor, and to dismantle and remove the, approximately 6 km of, existing network.

Close co-ordination between the mine operator and our site operations was necessary to ensure safe segregation of OHL construction and minimal disruption to the immense coal mining equipment being used on site.