MORE THAN two million pounds is to be invested in low-carbon technologies across Dorset.

Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) Distribution has announced £2.2million of funding to replace nearly 3km of cable. That will create an extra 7.2megawatts of capacity for low carbon technologies which, they say, could be harnessed for electric vehicle charging points.

For context, FreeingEnergy reports that one MW can charge a car for 3,600 miles or power a toaster for 89,000 slices of bread.

2km of fluid cable and 0.8km of solid cable will be replaced - which SSEN say will “create capacity for local residents' net zero ambitions”.

The investment comes after a tender process earlier in the year which saw a total of £41million distributed across 12 projects by SSEN.

An extensive public call for evidence in 2021, involving submissions from local authorities, developers and community groups, resulted in 12 programmes of network investment that received approval from Ofgem.

It is expected that the next stage in the process - a detailed design and construction phase - will take place this month.

Tim Eccleston, SSEN’s green recovery project manager for the south, said: “As part of the £41m project package that will help our customers to adopt low carbon technologies, such as electric vehicles, heat pumps and solar panels, SSEN is also installing around 1,000 low voltage monitors at key points across our north and south distribution network areas.

“This technology provides near real-time visibility in areas where high levels of electricity demand from increased uptake of electric vehicles and electric heating is predicted; enabling us to better manage local infrastructure and identify how best to optimise the capacity that meets our customers’ needs.”

Last year, the energy distribution company announced a £6.8million refurbishment of the overhead network running from Poole through to Blandford Forum and on to the edge of Yeovil; an ambitious and challenging scheme crossing over 45 kilometres of rural and urban areas with a planned construction date of August 2023.

In April 2022, SSEN completed a two year long, £2.5million network upgrade in Dorchester to boost the power supply for over 12,000 customers in the region.