National Grid backs ‘tighter thresholds’ for transmission connections

Projects bidding for transmission connections should be subject to tighter thresholds and a spatial plan drawn up to map the UK’s low carbon energy infrastructure, under a new National Grid blueprint for decarbonising the network.

A new report, entitled Delivering for 2035: Upgrading the grid for a secure, clean and affordable energy future, lays out the UK transmission network owner’s priorities for the steps required to decarbonise the electricity system by the government’s mid-2030s target date.

It says a “fundamental step change” is required in the scale and pace of delivery of new electricity network infrastructure.

Priorities identified by National Grid include a shift from the existing “first come, first served” approach to awarding grid connections.

This system gives projects incentives to secure place in the queue, regardless of how developed they are, potentially delaying more viable projects from connecting at an earlier date, says the report.

Instead, the National Grid recommends shifting to a “connect or move” process with tighter thresholds for those applying for connections.

This would ensure that projects unable to connect could be shifted out of the pipeline to ensure other projects are not blocked or delayed.

The report also recommends the development of strategic capacity hubs that would enable a more coordinated and innovative approach to connections than the existing demand-led system, which means the grid is only reinforced when a specific customer need is contracted.

A more strategic approach would enable capacity needs to be identified through a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan, which sets out the locations of key clean energy projects, such as hydrogen and offshore wind together with their associated network infrastructure.

New projects would then be required to connect in line with the available capacity within these hubs so that infrastructure is designed and delivered ahead of need arising.

The report also recommends creating a fast-track connection route for projects, which are strategically important to meeting net zero, prioritising areas where the economic value would be greatest.

The report recommends that the embryonic Future System Operator would lead the technical work on the spatial plan, which would then have full weight in planning law and policy backing.

It says work should start now on the first plan, which the government would ultimately own, so that it can be in place by 2025.

The report says the Holistic Network Design (HND), published last summer by the National Grid’s Energy System Operator arm, has provided a welcome blueprint and helped to kickstart Ofgem’s Accelerated Strategic Transmission Investment (ASTI) programme. But a ‘key limitation’ of the HND is that it has no formal role in the planning and consenting framework and is relatively narrow in scope.

Other recommendations in the report are to finalise the National Policy Statements by the summer and fully embed anticipatory investment, providing Ofgem with a more agile process to approve investment on a rolling basis in order to help accelerate new network capacity. The report also backs widespread calls for Ofgem to be given a statutory net zero duty.

Welcoming the report, RenewableUK director of future electricity systems, Barnaby Wharton said: “Reforming the planning system to make it more agile is long overdue to ensure that decisions about clean energy infrastructure are taken faster more swiftly.

“We can’t carry on waiting for up to ten years to connect new projects to the grid at a time when we should be prioritising Britain’s energy security. Instead, we need to anticipate where grid is going to be needed, so infrastructure is in place as soon as it’s required. Giving Ofgem a new mandate to put delivering net zero at the heart of every decision it takes will help revolutionise the speed at which the UK could build a grid that is fit for purpose in the twenty-first century.”