The gas distributor admitted safety failings that meant 11-year-old school boy Robbie Williamson was able to fall from a gas pipeline running on the outside of Dugdale Bridge at Lowerhouse lane in Burnley, into the canal below.
He was taken to Royal Blackburn hospital but died later the same day.
National Grid said in a statement: “We’re deeply sorry for what happened to Robbie Williamson.
“He and his friends were able to climb through railings owned by the local authority and onto the gas pipe which runs alongside Dugdale Bridge in Burnley because there weren’t adequate measures in place to stop them.”
Preston Crown Court was told by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), prosecuting, that National Grid Gas failed to properly protect the exposed pipeline from the risk of injury from falls from the pipeline.
The company’s records incorrectly recorded the pipe as being buried within the bridge and therefore was not subject to the correct inspection procedures for inspecting and preventing access to this type of exposed pipeline.
The records were also not updated after maintenance work had been carried out.
Exposed pipelines of this nature are usually fitted with a steel “fan” to prevent access.
National Grid said: “We put guards in place on the gas pipe shortly after the accident and also on other similar crossings throughout our network too.
“We contacted other utility companies to make sure they were aware of what had happened so that they could take action as well.”
National Grid has operated gas pipeline networks in the North West for more than a century.
It said: “This is the first time an accident of this kind has happened. We will do everything we can to ensure it is the last.
“Our sympathies remain with Robbie’s family.”
HSE Inspector Ian Redshaw said after the hearing: “This was a tragic accident which has had a devastating impact on Robbie’s family and friends.
“The company failed to assess the risks associated with this pipe to members of the public, and as a result they had not put in place any measures to prevent or deter access onto the pipe. This was a significant cause in Robbie’s death.”
The company must also pay £36,102.90 in costs.