New electricity substation is being built near Harborough to help electrify railway line

A new electricity substation is being built near Market Harborough to help electrify the Midland Main Line for thousands of rail passengers.

The National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) has been building the vital new power facility outside the village of Braybrooke since earlier this year.

It will form a critical part of the electrical infrastructure to support Network Rail’s electrification of the Midland Main Line.

The massive scheme has now hit a major milestone as the engineering team at the site has taken delivery of two new transformers.

They were delivered via an access road off Kettering Road built especially to ensure heavy construction traffic avoids Market Harborough and Braybrooke.

Weighing a mighty 100 tonnes, they will now be installed at the substation over the next few months.

Braybrooke Substation will provide a high-tech go-between between the railway and National Grid.

It will take electricity from the National Grid at 400kV to a transformer - which will then slash the voltage to 25kV.

Network Rail will then take the electricity and distribute it up and down the railway line via a track side feeder station to electric trains running between London St Pancras and Market Harborough.

Electrifying the line is set to generate important benefits for rail passengers and people living nearby – enabling faster, more efficient, quieter and cleaner trains to operate on the line.

Luke Sewell, Project Engineer for the National Grid, said: “This latest milestone is a huge step forward to both meeting our customers’ needs by providing a safe, secure and reliable supply of electricity and delivering on our commitment to decarbonisation.

“With the transformers now on site we are well on track for the new substation to be complete and operational by late next year.”

Gavin Crook, principal programme sponsor for Network Rail, said: “We are pleased at the progress towards the next phase of electrification of the Midland Main Line.

“This power connection is a key part of the network and will enable improved resilience for electric operation providing a cleaner, greener service for our passengers.”

The National Grid project team is now stepping up efforts to completing all the electrical work on site as the new Braybrooke substation should be fully set up by next winter.