Sparks are flying over a prestige hotel project which could have the plug pulled on it because Rochester is" running out of electricity".

Plans to turn the 17th century former Old Archdeaconry into a boutique guest house with chalet apartments in the garden are under threat because the new owners have been told there is insufficient power available to serve it.

And they have been advised by UK Power Networks that the only way their dream venture can go ahead is if they build their own electricity substation in the grounds - at a cost of up to £85,000.

The bombshell was delivered to businesswoman Rebecca Collins and her family, who bought the property for £1.4 million after more than three years of working with planners and conservationists to clinch the deal.

The situation has been described as " incredible" and "staggering" by the Rochester-based Collins family and a ward councillor.

Ms Collins, 36, general manager of the Cooling Castle Barn wedding venue, "fell in love" with the building in the cathedral precinct and plans to spend £2 million on the refurbishment.

But the company, which supplies power across the South East, has confirmed that the existing low voltage supply is not enough to power the 14-bedroom newly-named The Vines hotel.

Ms Collins, said: "It's incredible to get to this stage and then to be told by the electricity company that it has not got enough electricity.

"It's not as if I'm opening a power station in the middle of Rochester. Effectively they are saying Rochester is running out of power.

"We will fight this all the way but in the end they have got us over a barrel.

"This is such a positive, unique thing for Rochester. It has been a collaborative effort and we have worked hard to get the whole community, conservationists, including Historic England, and planners on board.

"It is not as though we are asking for a massive amount more power. To me it not a problem that's going to go away for Rochester."

Her case has been taken up by ward councillor Stuart Tranter who accused UK Power Networks of committing "corporate blackmail".

Cllr Tranter, said: "I am staggered that a relatively small business in central Rochester has been told the electricity network is at full capacity unless they pay to have a substation installed on their own land which in turn then feeds other consumers.

"The owners have absolutely no choice to accept or they must cancel the whole development project.

"To make matters worse, this is a conservation area and the walls of the property are protected. There is no certainty planning permission will be granted, and if it is, there may well be stringent and expensive conditions applied.

"Expecting a small business to pay tens of thousands extra just because the network has lacked investment is outrageously bad planning. We are not in a remote area, but in the heart of a city. And they will not even be using electricity for heating or cooking.

"The UKPN'south east region alone made a £174m profit after tax last year. Perhaps they should use a little bit of that profit to provide the network we expect here in Rochester.

Video: Developers left in the dark over electricity issue

Niamh Arnett, UKPN press officer, said: "Rochester has enough electricity capacity but new demand from an individual or organisation, such as this, is planned and paid for by the customers needing it.

"Under our regulatory framework the costs cannot be passed on to the general public to be built and paid for.We provided a quote on May 15 for a five-fold increase in electricity capacity at this property.

"This does not include a new electricity substation, but would require 70-metres of excavation, temporary three-way traffic lights, parking bay suspensions and re-laying York stone.

"We are committed to working closely with this customer to meet their new electricity connection needs and continue to explore all available options with them.

"Connection costs vary according to the extent of work and equipment required and this is a competitive market, with over 40 Independent Connection Providers (ICP) who can carry out such work. Hundreds of connections projects like this are carried out by independent connection providers each year.

"UK Power Networks works with local authorities and developers to plan for growth and infrastructure needs across our regions to ensure future customer needs are met and such work is also paid for by the commercial developers of those sites.

"In addition, UK Power Networks is investing more than £500 million in its electricity networks in 2018/19 and more than £4.5 billion over the eight years to 2023 to maintain safe and reliable power supplies for homes and businesses, both now and in the future."