Work is under way on a major revamp of Thetford's gas mains that will ensure safe and reliable gas supplies for local people for many years to come.

National Grid is renewing gas pipes in the town centre. Work started on Monday 16 March in Guildhall Street and the project is due to take around eight weeks to complete.

Engineers will be replacing gas pipes in Rampart Way, Raymond Street, Well Street, Castle Street, and Old Market Place. The existing iron gas mains will be substituted with tough plastic pipes that have a lifespan of at least 80 years.

National Grid authorising engineer Vince Doggett said: "We need to connect people to the energy they use and the new gas mains will help ensure Thetford continues to enjoy a safe and reliable gas supply. We're sorry for any inconvenience this essential work may cause and we'll do our personal best to compete the project as quickly as we can."

To keep engineers and motorists safe temporary traffic lights will be in place at the junctions of Guildhall Street, Rampart Way, Raymond Street, Old Market Street and Castle Street for the next two weeks. A three-way traffic light system will then be introduced for one week at the junction of Guildhall Street.

To allow the project to be carried out safely and to be completed as quickly as possible, National Grid will need to close Cage Lane temporarily from 30 March for two weeks. Well Street is also due to be closed during mid-April for a week. A diversion will be in place.

As part of the work, engineers will have to replace some of the service pipes that connect individual homes and business to the gas main. National Grid will contact the occupiers of all properties that are affected to explain when this will take place and what is going to happen.

If members of the public have any queries or concerns they can call National Grid customer services on 0800 0965678.

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Contact for media information only:

Sara Wilcox

National Grid Media Relations

• 01926 655271
• 07899 983792

[email protected]

Out of hours duty press officer:

0845 366 6769

For more information, please visit our website: www.nationalgrid.com/UK

Notes to Editors:

National Grid has two contracted organisations carrying out gas mains replacement work on its behalf. They are: tRIIO, a partnership between Skanska and Morrison Utility Services, in North London, East Anglia and the East of England and Balfour Beatty in the West Midlands and North West.

National Grid is one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the world and has been named Responsible Business of the Year 2014 by Business in the Community. We own and manage the grids that connect people to the energy they need, from whatever the source. In Britain and the north-eastern states of the US we run systems that deliver gas and electricity to millions of people, businesses and communities.

In Britain, we run the gas and electricity systems that our society is built on, delivering gas and electricity across the country. In the North Eastern US, we connect more than seven million gas and electric customers to vital energy sources, essential for our modern lifestyles.

National Grid in the UK:

• We own the high-voltage electricity transmission network in England and Wales, operating it across Great Britain
• We own and operate the high pressure gas transmission system in Britain
• Our gas distribution business delivers gas to 10.9 million homes and businesses
• We also own a number of related businesses including LNG importation, land remediation and metering
• National Grid manages the National Gas Emergency Service free phone line on behalf of the industry - 0800 111 999 (all calls are recorded and may be monitored).
• Our portfolio of other businesses is mainly concerned with infrastructure provision and related services where we can exploit our core skills and assets to create value. These businesses operate in areas such as Metering, Grain LNG Import, Interconnectors and Property. National Grid Carbon Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of National Grid. It undertakes Carbon Capture Storage related activities on behalf of National Grid.

National Grid in the US:

• National Grid delivers electricity to approximately 3.4 million customers in New England and upstate New York
• We own 3.8 gigawatts of contracted electricity generation, providing power to over one million LIPA customers
• We are the largest distributor of natural gas in northeastern U.S., serving approximately 3.5 million customers in New York, Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

Find out more about the energy challenge and how National Grid is helping find solutions to some of the challenges we face at www.nationalgridconnecting.com