Sark’s Chief Pleas to plan for electricity grid overhaul
SARK is working up plans to completely overhaul its electricity grid and to have it operated by a new supplier.
With mediation talks between Chief Pleas and Sark Electricity Ltd going nowhere, and independent expert concerns raised about the state of Sark's electricity infrastructure, it could take a big decision as soon as within the next few weeks.
SEL owner Alan Witney-Price had warned that he would have to cut off power to Little Sark next week if an agreement was not reached to allow the company to replace the electricity link across La Coupee.
But now the Policy & Finance Committee has confirmed that it is looking to overhaul the island’s electricity supply and wants a mandate to start talks with other commercial suppliers.
The committee will take a report to Chief Pleas in the next couple of weeks to set out proposals to provide access ‘to a resilient and safe supply of electricity for every Sark home and business’ which will mean going out to tender ‘to construct a new electricity system through a commercial supplier working in collaboration with Chief Pleas’.
The committee said this was considered to be the best option to secure electricity supply in Sark for the longer term.
Chief Pleas already has an option for compulsory purchase of SEL and said that mediation has proved impossible.
An independent report has raised serious health and safety concerns about the condition of the electricity grid, described as dated and not meeting basic British industry standards.
The ongoing dispute has come to a head over the replacement of cabling across La Coupee to Little Sark.
The company wants permission to bury a new connection beneath the roadway, but Policy & Finance said it was not so simple.
‘The engineering considerations to ensure the integrity of this historic and vital causeway are significant,’ said committee chairman Conseiller John Guille, who also claimed the company was favouring ‘an expensive and disruptive option’
‘This one example indicates the complexities involved with replacing the electrical infrastructure which need to be properly researched and costed before permissions are granted.
‘Based on the current circumstances the committee is firmly of the view that it needs to find an alternative model of supply that provides long-term resilience. This is a fundamental concern that affects the welfare of all islanders.’
P&F will be publishing a report in early July to take to Chief Pleas for debate, but already concerns have been raised about the cost and complexity of the project.
Mr Witney-Price was contacted for comment and is expected to reply in due course.
