Plans to remove pylons and move overhead transmission lines underground in the Cotswolds National Landscape between Winchcombe and Dowdeswell have been rejected.
The application for the Cotswolds Visual Impact Provision (VIP) project, submitted by National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), was officially rejected by Ofgem on Thursday 30 July 2026, stating the need to 'protect consumers from unnecessary costs' as the project 'doesn't represent the best value for bill payers'.
It means that the existing overhead pylons and transmission line which run through the Cotswolds National Landscape will remain in place, and will continue to be operated and maintained by National Grid.
The final decision follows a 28-day consultation, which ran from Wednesday 1 April until Tuesday 5 May 2026, where Ofgem proposed to reject National Grid's £177.56 million plans to remove 16 pylons and replace a 7.4km section of the overhead transmission line with an underground cable, saying its submission 'did not sufficiently address our concerns about affordability, value for money and the cost to consumers'.
Out of the 17 public responses it received to the consultation, 15 disagreed with the plan to reject the funding request.
In spite of the concerns raised around protected landscapes and the 'character-damaging nature' of the Cotswold pylons; the economic benefits and consumers' willingness to face marginal cost increases to support the project; the inefficiency of cancelling the project at an advanced stage of development; and the potential for breakdown of trust in the authority and its future projects, Ofgem rejected the plans, maintaining its original position set out in its Draft Determination.
It cited rising consumer energy bills, conflict in the Middle East, and constrained supply chains as some of the reasons it did not believe funding the visual impact mitigation project represented value for money for consumers, nor did it see any evidence that the proposed economic and landscape benefits justified the 'enormous' cost consumers would pay for them.
Instead, Ofgem said that the alternative option of uprating the full route of existing overhead transmission line by 2029 at an estimated cost of £155.39 million, was a better solution and would deliver the same system benefits at a significantly lower cost.
In a statement on its website, National Grid said: 'We recognise this update will be disappointing for local communities, landowners and stakeholders who have helped to develop and support the scheme. We’d like to thank local communities, landowners and all those who worked with us for their time, input and support.'
Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) also expressed its disappointment at the decision, with the chair of CPRE Gloucestershire, Simon Murray, saying: 'CPRE recognises the cost of living pressures facing many families across the country and the need for government to spend money wisely, but this decision is another example of short-term economic arguments overriding wider rural interests.
'The Cotswolds National Landscape is world-renowned for its beauty and draws hundreds of thousands of tourists from across the world every year. Here was an opportunity to enhance its countryside beauty by undergrounding pylons, as other countries have done. As a member of the project’s national Stakeholder Advisory Group since 2014, CPRE has worked with National Grid and other partners for more than a decade to progress this scheme, which had universal support.
'Many hours and a great deal of money has been wasted – and a great opportunity has been missed.'
