A MASSIVE £4.6 million upgrade to boost power supplies across two Dorset towns has been completed on time and to budget.

After 14 months, the distribution operator has upgraded a 32km circuit on the electricity infrastructure serving Poole and Shaftesbury and the areas between.

The substantial programme of works by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) will benefit around 160,000 homes and businesses following the investment and some 38,000 hours of work.

Work carried out includes:

  • The installation of 160km of new conductor cables
  • 621 new insulator sets installed across 173 overhead network towers
  • 19 sections of overhead lines undergrounded

Project manager Daniel Rees said: “SSEN is delighted to have completed this substantial programme of works in Poole and Shaftesbury and my team and I would very much like to thank our customers in the area for their patience and understanding while we worked to upgrade their network. 

“This is one of several recent and ongoing projects that SSEN is carrying out to ensure that the wider area of Dorset has a resilient and flexible network suitable for customers’ needs now and for many years to come.”

SSEN also said the work was undertaken ahead of an estimated uptake of 13,488 electric vehicles across Poole by 2030.