This week, we’re handing the blog over to SSEN Transmission! To find out more about how projects like the Spittal to Beauly overhead line will deliver clean power and much more for the Highlands, read on…
SSEN Transmission is responsible for the electricity transmission network in the north of Scotland, maintaining and investing in the high voltage 132kV, 220kV, 275kV and 400kV electricity transmission network.
Our network consists of underground and subsea cables, overhead lines on wooden poles or steel towers, and electricity substations. It extends over a quarter of the UK’s land mass, crossing some of its most challenging terrain.
Our first priority is to provide a safe and reliable supply of electricity to our communities. We do this by taking the electricity from generators and transporting it at high voltages over long distances through our transmission network for onwards distribution to homes and businesses in villages, towns and cities.
Meet Kelly Scott
I’m Kelly Scott, one of the Lead Community Liaison Managers at SSEN Transmission. In our role, we work at the heart of our engagement with communities across the north of Scotland, acting as the link between our project teams and the people who live and work near our transmission developments. My job is to make sure local voices are heard and that communities are kept informed, have opportunities to share their views, and see those views reflected in how we deliver our projects to ensure impacts are mitigated and opportunities maximised.
The work we’re doing at SSEN Transmission is deeply important to me. Our projects play a vital role in connecting and enabling Scotland’s vast renewable energy resources, helping the country move toward a clean power future while bringing long-term social and economic benefits to the areas we serve. And as a Scottish-based business with roots firmly in the Highlands, we care deeply about ensuring that we deliver this essential infrastructure – like the Spittal to Beauly and Beauly to Peterhead overhead lines – in a way that is respectful, transparent, and genuinely beneficial to local communities.
If you’d like to learn more about our projects or share your thoughts, we’d love to hear from you – please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our team using the relevant contact details on our website.
After more than two years of intense planning and consultation, we submitted a Section 37 consent application for the proposed Spittal – Loch Buidhe – Beauly 400kV overhead line project last month – a key milestone in Scotland’s journey toward a cleaner, resilient energy network.
Why this project matters
This overhead line is not just another power-line – it’s a central part of our plans to invest more that £22bn in the coming years to upgrade electricity transmission infrastructure across the north of Scotland, whilst other transmission operators work to do the same across the rest of the GB network. The Spittal to Beauly link is a strategic corridor that will unlock vast amounts of low-carbon electricity generated in Scotland and the surrounding seas, and deliver it to demand centres across the country, bolstering energy security, supporting clean power targets – and, crucially, supporting jobs and delivering a range of legacy benefits too.
The need for the project – and the others that we are working on here at SSEN Transmission – has been independently assessed and given the green light by both the National Energy System Operator (NESO) and energy regulator, Ofgem. Since then, over 50 consultation events and public meetings have helped to shape the plans since 2022, making sure that local voices have been heard throughout.
What’s included in the project?
A new 400kV overhead line between Spittal and Beauly and the associated new substations along the route at:
- Banniskirk substation – located near Spittal;
- Carnaig substation – near Loch Buidhe; and
- Fanellan substation – near Beauly.
Two new HVDC converter stations – at Banniskirk and Fanellan – are also crucial to the design of the project, supporting our wider plans for new subsea cable projects like Spittal to Peterhead and the Western Isles to Beauly.
In designing the overhead line route, our role has been to balance environmental, technical, economic, and social factors. Minimising impacts on protected environmental sites and heritage assets has been a key priority, alongside our aim to minimise the impact upon people and communities wherever possible. As we reach this key stage on the project, we are confident that the route we’ve applied for, best balances all of these considerations.
Economic, community and local benefits
Beyond the obvious positive impact that this project will have in helping Scotland and the UK to deliver on energy security and clean power goals – the project, and others like it – present a huge economic opportunity for the Highlands. Economic analysis, which has been independently peer reviewed by leading consultancy, BiGGAR Economics, has found that, if delivered in full, our investment plans will:
- Support up to 17,500 jobs in Scotland with around 8,400 of those in the north of Scotland
- Deliver an economic boost of around £7bn across Scotland
The Spittal to Beauly line on its own is expected to generate some £35 million in community benefit funding, as we work to bring positive benefits and a long-lasting legacy to communities.
Beyond that, our investment programme will help to alleviate the north of Scotland’s housing shortage – with our commitment to support the development of 1,000 new homes across our transmission region, around 400 of which are planned to be constructed right here in the Highlands.
To accommodate our growing activity, we’ve expanded our workforce from around 400 employees in 2019 to around 2,500 today – including new office space and a warehouse in Inverness – with more recruitment planned in the coming years.
As we move forward, the Spittal to Beauly project represents far more than an engineering project – it is an investment in the future of the Highlands and beyond. By unlocking clean energy, strengthening resilience, and creating meaningful economic and legacy opportunities, this development will help ensure that communities in the Highlands can thrive and grow in a low-carbon future.
With the help of local voices and continued collaboration, we are confident that this project, if consented, will leave a lasting legacy of prosperity and progress for generations to come.
Blog post by SSEN Transmission’s Rebecca Gay, Senior Development Project Manager for the Spittal to Beauly 400kV overhead line project.