Organisers called for entries that were both “grounded in reality and beautiful”
A T-shaped design has scooped the prize in a competition to find the next generation of electricity pylons.
Danish firm Bystrup beat 250 rivals to take the £5,000 prize offered by the Royal Institute of British Architects.
It set the challenge to replace the familiar “triangle” design – in use since the 1920s – in May, although there is no commitment to build them.
An increasing number of pylons are expected to be needed to connect new wind, nuclear and hydroelectric plants.
Six entries which were shortlisted in the competition, organised with the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the National Grid, have been on show in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.
The jury, which included Energy Secretary Chris Huhne, leading architects and energy officials, rated entries on criteria including design quality, functionality, and technical viability.
‘Transform landscapes’
After calling for entries “both grounded in reality and beautiful”, the judges took into account the public response to the designs and the teams’ abilities to create them.
Organisers say the target of reducing carbon emissions by 80% by 2050 will lead to electricity playing an increasingly important role in the UK’s energy mix.
A subsequent proliferation of pylons and underground cables “have the potential to transform our landscapes for good or bad, and for generations to come”, they said.
Campaigners frequently complain that pylons blight the countryside, while Lib Dem MP Tessa Munt described damage they cause as “beyond belief” in a Parliamentary debate in July.
Courtesy of News Hub Today
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