TheTacticalCat

Could be wrong here but I believe in workshops etc. sockets are up above for cable management with power tools and machinery if they're able to be powered by a plug. It would make sense for them to be installed like this in a basement since that's where a workshop would probably be, and in rural areas the difficulty of calling out an engineer or mechanic especially in winter would emphasise the need to mend in situ. The fact that it's in a beam is a bit odd though. Perhaps the perpendicular bit of metal running across the ceiling is for the power cable?