Electricity Act 1945

Subject to this Act and as in this section hereafter provided, a supply authority may do all or any of the following things, that is to say —

enter upon any land, street or place and survey and take levels thereof;

open and break up the soil, surface or pavement of any streets and bridges within the limits of any district or locality to be supplied by the supply authority with electricity, and open and break up any sewers, drains or tunnels within or under any such streets or bridges, and carry out and install transmission and distribution works under, over, along or across any such street, bridge, or shore of the sea, or of any stream or water but so that any electric line crossing above the surface of any street or of any water commonly used for navigation shall be constructed in accordance with the technical standards, and with the clearances from structures and surfaces, prescribed, and that the free use of any street, bridge, shore, stream or water aforesaid shall not be obstructed more than is necessary for enabling the supply authority to exercise the rights, powers and authorities conferred upon it by this Act;

from time to time repair, alter or remove any such works;

for all or any of the purposes aforesaid remove and use all materials in, under or over any streets, and bridges aforesaid;

carry out and install any transmission works or distribution works in any place or in, against or through any building for the purpose of supplying the same or any other place or building with electricity, and set up any service apparatus necessary for providing thereto a complete supply of electricity, and for measuring and ascertaining the extent of such supply;

generally all other acts and things which the supply authority from time to time deems necessary with respect to the supply of electricity.

A supply authority shall not erect or install any distribution works and service apparatus in or against any building or on any land without the consent of the owners and occupiers thereof, but nothing in subsections (2) to (5) shall preclude the supply authority from entering such building or land and carrying out, erecting and installing new distribution works and service apparatus to replace any distribution works or service apparatus already lawfully carried out, erected or installed or to repair or alter any such works or apparatus.

Before a supply authority proceeds to open or break up any street, bridge, sewer, drain or tunnel it shall give to any public authority affected, under whose control or management the same or any part of the same or any works on, under or above the same may be placed, at least 3 clear day’s notice in writing of the intention of the supply authority so to do except —

in cases of emergency arising from defects in any transmission works or distribution works of the supply authority in which cases such notice shall be given with all reasonable dispatch after the beginning of the work or the necessity for the same has arisen; and

in cases where the work to be carried out consists of the connection of any distribution works to any transmission works which have been previously laid or erected, in which cases one clear day’s notice in writing shall be sufficient.

No street, bridge, sewer, drain or tunnel shall be opened up or broken up (except in the case of emergency) except under the superintendence of the public authority having the control or management thereof or of its officer, and according to such plan as shall be approved by such public authority or its officer, or, in case of any difference regarding such plan, then according to such plan as shall be determined, settled or approved by the Director.

Despite subsection (4), if the public authority or its officer fails to attend at the time fixed for the opening up or breaking up of any such street, bridge, sewer, drain or tunnel after notice as required by subsection (3) or shall not submit any plan for opening up or breaking up the same or shall refuse or fail to superintend the operations in connection therewith, then the supply authority may carry out the work specified in the said notice without the superintendence of the public authority or its officer.

If the owner of a building referred to in subsection (1)(e) shall rebuild or alter the same, any work attached to the building shall be removed so far as may be necessary to enable such rebuilding or alteration to be carried out, and, if so required shall be affixed to the new or altered building at the cost of the supply authority.