Lower Lea Valley Cable Tunnels

The Lower Lea Valley Cable Tunnels, known as the PLUG (Power Line Under Ground) Project during construction, are a pair of 6 km cable tunnels running beneath the lower Lea Valley in east London. Constructed at a cost of £130m ahead of the 2012 London Olympic Games, they are owned by National Grid plc and UK Power Networks.

Lower Lea Valley Cable Tunnels
Location
CountryUK
ProvinceGreater London
Ownership information
OwnerNational Grid plc, UK Power Networks
Construction information
ContractorsArup Group
Construction started2006 [1]
Commissioned2008
Technical information
TypeUnderground tunnel
Type of currentAC
Total length6 km (3.7 mi)
AC voltage400 kV, 132 kV

The two tunnels run south from Hackney substation to West Ham substation at a depth of 20-30m below ground.[2] One tunnel is 4.15m in diameter and carries a 400 kV circuit as part of the National Grid, while the other tunnel is 2.82m in diameter and carries a 132 kV circuit as part of the London power distribution network.[3]

The UK Power Networks tunnel also features an 850m spur tunnel to link it to the substation in Bow.

The tunnels replaced two overground power lines which crossed the area which would be turned into the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. The cable tunnels were one of the first major projects for the London Olympics, and was critical to allow subsequent work on the Olympic Park to continue on schedule. After the tunnels were commissioned, the 52 pylons and 80km of overhead wires were removed and recycled.[4] More than 200,000 cubic metres of spoil was generated, the majority of which was reused in the construction of the Olympic Park. [5]

See also

References
  1. "Work begins on 2012 Games venues". BBC News. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  2. "Relocating powerlines to unlock Olympic Park landscape for London 2012". Arup (Press release). Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  3. "Lower Lea Valley Cable Tunnels - A Case Study of a Program Critical Project". OneMine. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  4. "Olympic site pylons pulled down". BBC News. 13 November 2008. Retrieved 15 January 2020.
  5. "First Olympic building project completed on time". Inside the Games. Retrieved 15 January 2020.


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