Project profile

  • Upgrade of an existing 220kV line by a new 380kV overhead power line
  • Length: 30km
  • TSO: 50Hertz
  • NGOs involved via BESTGRID: NABU, DUH, Germanwatch
  • Expected start of operation: 2019/20

BESTGRID activities

50Hertz has organized an info-tour with a mobile citizen office with stops at eleven different locations along proposed corridors for the new line. During this tour, measurements of electro- and magnetic fields at the existing 220kV line have been conducted. Moreover, four round table events have been organised in cooperation with NABU Germany and DUH, targeting environmental stakeholders and representatives of local authorities and municipalities. 

Lessons learned

  • Involving local authorities and NGOs at an early stage in the planning procedure helps to identify critical points along the proposed corridors.
  • It is important to establish channels (publicly accessible channels such as websites/phone but also individual contacts) to collect input from stakeholders and provide feedback to their requests/suggestions etc. in order to assure a proper way of dealing with their concerns as well as to act and be perceived as transparent.
  • The mobile citizens office was appreciated by local authorities for being a flexible tool, offering information and facilitating dialogue with local citizens, thereby allowing the TSO to gain access to local knowledge that can be used in the planning; going to where the people are (small villages, markets) helps to overcome barriers and attracts people who otherwise would not have been reached.
  • Cooperation with local authorities and NGOs in planning an info tour helps to get local support and to identify relevant places; a positive side effect: establishing trust and developing contact within the local authorities, which can be useful for potential future requests from both sides.
  • Cooperation with local media can be recommended (in our case to promote and document the tour), as it can also provide guidance for the media on the coverage of the project and eventually helps to raise awareness of the public.
  • Experts from within the company as well as external experts (such as academia, public authorities, NGOs) give credibility to the format and help build trust.
  • Measuring EMF as a good tool for illustrating a technically complicated topic.
  • Overall: smaller but continuous measures have proven to facilitate a continuous dialogue and relationship with the relevant local and regional stakeholders – implemented well, it is a chance for the TSO to be seen as a transparent and reliable partner on a continuous base.

More information

  • For more information about the project as such, consult 50Hertz's website (in German)
  • All measures planned can be read in the action plan 50Hertz has published in the first months of the project
  • The environmental NGO NABU has published its experiences and insights of the project in a report that is available here
  • A summary of first information events can be found here
  • If you want to know more about the tour of the mobile citizen office, please click here
  • For more impressions about the cooperation with the environmental NGOs NABU and DUH (German Environmental Aid), please click here. 
  • For the final report written by 50Hertz, click here. 

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