About us
Green GEN Cymru is based in Wales and is developing green energy networks in Wales to meet the future needs of Welsh people, communities, and businesses.
Green GEN Cymru will design, build, and operate a new 132kV (132,000- volt) distribution network needed to connect new Welsh renewable energy projects to the electricity transmission network, helping to get green energy to homes and businesses across Wales and beyond.
Our green grid network can provide a regional network solution for South and Mid Wales. Renewable energy generators will be able to apply to connect to it, reducing the need for more infrastructure in future. It also has the potential to support technologies like 5G that could help farmers, schools, and businesses to be at the cutting edge of technology while being based in a rural area. The connection could open up potential for business investment in the area and support the creation of jobs and skills and the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy for heating homes and electric vehicles.
We will work closely with Welsh communities and stakeholders as we develop our plans, to maximise the benefits and minimise the impacts for local people.
Independent Distribution Network Operator Licence
Green GEN Cymru has applied for an Independent Distribution Network Operator (IDNO) licence from Ofgem. The IDNO licence is required to allow Green GEN Cymru to transport renewable energy from where it is generated to our homes and businesses where it will be used. Ofgem have confirmed that the application is currently being assessed.
You can find out more at the Green GEN Cymru website www.greengencymru.com.
What does the project involve?
Green GEN Towy Usk will connect Bute Energy’s proposed Nant Mithil Energy Park to the National Transmission System.
In order to do this, we are proposing a new 132kV (132,000-volt) connection, approximately 97 kilometres in length between a substation in Bute Energy’s Nant Mithil Energy Park and a new substation, to be developed by National Grid Electricity Transmission, on the existing 400kV (400,000-volt) transmission line near Llandyfaelog, in Carmarthenshire.
Bute Energy’s proposed Aberedw and Bryn Gilwern Energy Parks, which are at an earlier stage of development, will also connect to Green GEN Towy Usk, via the same proposed switching station, reducing the need for individual connections from each of the energy parks to the National Transmission System.
Examples of what the wooden pole connection will look like - click the image above to open a gallery
Why is this project needed?
There’s endless potential for renewable energy in Wales – particularly from the wind that blows across our hills and mountains. But we need to get the green energy generated to the many homes, hospitals, schools, businesses, and communities that need it in the rest of Wales and beyond.
Bute Energy’s portfolio of onshore wind farms, solar PV projects and co-located battery energy storage systems could have an installed capacity in excess of 3GW by 2030, making a substantial contribution towards meeting the renewable energy targets of the Welsh Government and the Net Zero carbon objectives of the UK Government.
Much of the existing electricity network infrastructure in Wales was built many years ago to transport energy from old fossil-fuel power stations in the north and south. The existing network in Mid Wales does not have nearly enough capacity to connect all the new renewable energy we need for our homes and businesses, locally and nationally.
To end the use of fossil fuels we need new infrastructure, and quickly. Green GEN Cymru is seeking to address this by connecting Bute Energy’s proposed Nant Mithil Energy Park to the National Transmission System.
You can find out more about Green GEN Cymru by visiting our main website here.
For more information on the energy parks proposed by Bute Energy, please visit their website www.bute.energy.
What will the Towy Usk connection look like?
As we develop our projects, we considered the visual impacts of the overhead lines and how the potential for these can be reduced through careful routeing; for example, seeking to avoid towns and villages, and areas with environmental designations.
Our original proposal for the Towy Usk 132kV connection was for a double-circuit overhead line, carried on steel pylons.
In our first round of consultation in spring 2023, we asked people for their views on our preferred route and anything they would like us to take into account when developing our proposals. Since then, we have carefully considered all the feedback we received, alongside further environmental and technical assessments, and we have made a number of changes to our proposals.
Our revised proposal includes a single-circuit overhead line supported on wood poles from the proposed Nant Mithil Energy Park to a new switching station south of the A481 at the foot of Aberedw Hill, and a section of underground cable where the route crosses the River Towy near Llanarthney. We have also made some alterations to the route in other places.
Our draft route alignment
Development of the project following the first round of consultation
Following the first round of consultation in spring 2023 where we asked people for their views on our preferred route for Green GEN Towy Usk, we re-examined our preferred route from an environmental, technical, and economic perspective to see if we could make changes based on the feedback received and our own further assessments and site visits.
We looked at where we could make changes to the route, and reviewed where we might be able to change the proposed technology and infrastructure (such as where it may be more appropriate to use wood poles or underground cables instead of steel pylons).
Following this work, we identified a draft route alignment (including potential pole and pylon positions) within the reviewed preferred route.
The draft route alignment takes account of the feedback we received from communities and stakeholders, and includes consideration of biodiversity, the landscape and views, cultural heritage, woodlands, flood risk, geology and soils, other land uses, and technical needs.
Interactive map
We have produced an interactive map showing the draft route alignment for Towy Usk. For ease of reference, we have organised the draft route alignment into five sections.
In this second round of consultation, we are asking for your feedback on:
Any factors you think we should consider when developing our proposals for the draft route alignment, including the proposed locations of pylons, wood poles, underground cables and switching station.
The poles and pylons in each of the 5 sections are numbered on the interactive map for referencing in your feedback.
You can zoom to specific areas you would like to see and click on the route to see the pole/pylon reference number.
A summary explaining how the route has been updated, can be viewed by clicking on the relevant section maps below.
Route sections:
You can find more information about the consultation, the draft route alignment, and our revised proposals in the Stage two consultation brochure.
Following this work, we identified a draft route alignment (including potential pole and pylon positions) guided by the reviewed preferred route.
We backchecked the methodology used in the Grid Connection Strategy and reviewed the additional option, and our conclusion is that the most appropriate connection option remains at a new substation in Carmarthenshire. The Grid Connection Strategy has been updated to reflect this work.
We know that new infrastructure can be disruptive to communities. We are committed to doing everything we can to cause the least disturbance to the environment and those who live, work, and enjoy recreation close to our proposals.