Mechelen

Construction of a backup line after the storm of 9 July and work on restoring the Mechelen–Leest connection

Storm damage to high-voltage line

Extreme weather on 9 July 2024 toppled nine high-voltage pylons over a distance of four kilometres, mainly in the Leest area. It also brought down the high-voltage cables, most of which ended up in fields, but some of which fell onto around 15 homes. No one was injured, but the material damage and impact on local residents was extensive.

Backup line as a temporary solution

Before the storm, Mechelen and the surrounding area were supplied with electricity by two 70-kV high-voltage lines and two 150-kV high-voltage lines. The extreme weather brought down the 150-kV lines, leaving only the 70-kV lines to supply the region. This made the grid in Mechelen and the surrounding area vulnerable, as a fault on the 70-kV line would jeopardise the entire power supply.

The technical experts came up with a solution in the form of a backup power line to be built at short notice. Our teams are specifically trained for this. An emergency procedure was launched in consultation with the municipal authorities and the landowners (and users) in order to construct the backup pylons.

The backup line is a temporary solution to replace the damaged 150-kV high-voltage line and so safeguard the power supply to Mechelen and the surrounding area. In the long term, a permanent connection will need to be built.

The route

The backup line is a temporary high-voltage line consisting of five backup pylons with a height of around 40–45 metres. The northernmost pylon is located at Ten Doorn, and the southernmost between Kouterweg and Heirstraat. The backup line will remain in service until the destroyed high-voltage line is fully operational again. Elia is currently studying the route of a new permanent connection.
Schedule

After the storm on 9 July 2024, the top priority was to make everything safe: both electrically (e.g. earthing) and in terms of equipment (removing high-voltage lines and pylons). Thanks to the hard work of Elia's teams and the great solidarity between the workers on the ground, the clean-up work went smoothly. Once this was complete, Elia started working on the preliminaries for the backup line. Construction of the backup line began on 24 July 2024, and the line was commissioned on 9 August 2024. The backup line is expected to remain in place for around a year as a temporary solution to ensure security of energy supply for Mechelen and the surrounding area.

Now that the backup line has been built, Elia is shifting its priority to the permanent restoration of the connection. We are currently carrying out some studies on the preliminaries for the new link (e.g. to assess the condition of the downed pylons' foundations, and to determine the permit process). Once these studies are complete, Elia will enter into consultations with all the stakeholders involved.
Documents

Information sheet – Overhead and underground construction of electricity connections (in Dutch)

Information sheet – Damage (in Dutch)

Press release: Elia making every effort to restore high-voltage grid in Mechelen region following storm

Press release: Update on storm damage in Mechelen: Power supply restored following the commissioning of a temporary backup line

News

21 October 2024

Backup line successfully commissioned

The backup power line in Heffen has been commissioned. Extreme weather on 9 July 2024 toppled nine high-voltage pylons over a distance of four kilometres, leaving only one high-voltage line supplying power to Mechelen. Elia lost no time in building a backup line, and the five backup pylons have now been erected and connected to the existing high-voltage grid.

See all news

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Work (overhead line)

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