Balfour Beatty installs world’s first T-pylons

Working on behalf of National Grid, Balfour Beatty said it has successfully installed the world’s inaugural T-pylon, that represents the first new design for electricity pylons for nearly 100 years.

The T-pylon, is the first of 116 to be erected along a 57km route in Somerset. Upon completion, the pylons will connect six million homes and businesses with low-carbon electricity from Hinkley Point C, the UK’s first nuclear power station in a generation.

The T-pylon design is the result of a 2011 international competition organised by the Royal Institute of British Architect (RIBA) and the Government, with the aim of reducing the impact of electricity pylons on the environment. Highlighting its innovative design, the T-pylon won a Structural Steel Design Award (SSDA) in 2017.

As the name suggests, standing 35m-tall, the design forms a T-shape and is approximately one-third shorter than the traditional lattice pylon design. As a result of its reduced size the new pylon has a smaller footprint and a reduced environmental impact.

Balfour Beatty Managing Director for Rail and Utilities Matt Steele said: “Our unique capability and extensive experience in delivering major, complex overhead schemes, makes us ideally positioned to play a key role in constructing the world’s first T-pylons.”