People living in a Powys village say they feel that their voices are not being heard over proposals to install 12 to 14-metre high wooden electricity poles through their community.

Trefeglwys Community Council has told Green GEN Cymru that a number of residents have raised concerns about plans for their proposed Rhiwlas Green Energy Network.

"Trefeglwys is the largest of the conurbations to be directly affected by your proposed corridor while Llangurig, Carno and Cefn Coch will not be directly affected," the council said. "Consultation with our residents should have been a priority!"

Green GEN Cymru, which is part of Bute Energy that is working on a series of windfarms across Powys, said it will brief the council on their plans later in January.

County Times: People living in Trefeglwys have raised concerns about plans to install wooden electricity poles in the area.People living in Trefeglwys have raised concerns about plans to install wooden electricity poles in the area. (Image: Jonathan Rudd/County Times Camera Club)

The Rhiwlas Green Energy Network aims to link the proposed Banc Du and Rhiwlas Energy Parks in the Llangurig area to a proposed pylon network crossing the Vyrnwy Valley, which will then connect to the National Grid. Onshore wind energy developer Bute Energy wants to install up to 15 wind turbines at Rhiwlas and up to seven wind turbines at Banc Du. The plans are currently at the research stage with the Welsh Government.

Last week, Trefeglwys Community Council told residents that it was waiting to hear from Green GEN Cymru about when its representative will be available for a public meeting for the proposed pylon route.

"We understand that phase one of the consultation finished on 10th January 2024 and we are disappointed that a meeting could not have been organised before this date," the council said.

"A number of our residents have raised concerns with the Community Council regarding your proposals. Amongst which are that no effort has been made to minimise the visual impact on highly populated areas with your pylons following densely populated, fertile valley floors and pristine amenity areas.

OTHER NEWS:

"We are also left to believe that high voltage DC cables can (as preferred by the Welsh Government) be routed underground. Yet the proposed underground section will only be between the two Llangurig windfarms.

"We feel that the first phase of the consultation may be considered by your sidelining of our community but look forward to your future engagement with our constituents."

In response, Gareth Williams from Green GEN Cymru thanked everyone who took the time to speak with the company about the proposal.

"Their views will help us refine our plans and develop the best project possible. Over the coming months, we will review feedback from local people, along with reports from environmental and technical surveys, and use it to evolve the design and routing of the project, responding to the issues that have been raised.

“We are in touch with Trefeglwys Community Council and will be briefing them on our plans later in January. We also appreciate their feedback on our consultation planning. We anticipate that the next round of consultation on Rhiwlas GEN will be in late 2024 and we have offered to hold a drop-in session in Trefeglwys at that time too.

Get in touch

Share your views on this story by sending a letter to the editor. To get in touch email news@countytimes.co.uk, or fill in the form on this section of our website.

“Mid Wales is ill equipped to deal with future electricity needs as the world transition to clean energy production. We believe that future investment in the area will continue to stall of this isn’t addressed. 

“Whilst we are not the only provider who seek to enable the distribution of renewable energy in mid Wales, we feel ours provide the best solution for local communities and the energy system. 

"The wooden poles which will support Rhiwlas GEN are anticipated to be approximately 12m-14m high depending on topography, and will blend sympathetically into the local landscape, reducing the overall visual impact of the project.

“What is absolutely clear is that mid Wales needs more clean energy, and we believe we have to work with communities to deliver the least intrusive solution and share the benefits.”