Winser: Transmission projects delivery time can be halved

The time it takes to deliver transmission projects can be halved, the government’s Electricity Network Commissioner has told ministers.

Nick Winser revealed the headline finding of his transmission network review, while appearing at a hearing of the House of Commons environment audit committee. The review was submitted to the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero and is due to be published later this year.

Winser told the committee of MPs that his initial brief from ministers was to determine how to cut the typical 14 year timescale for delivering transmission projects. He added that he had been asked to examine if it was possible to cut the time in half or, if not, if it would be possible to reduce the time by three years.

The former UK National Grid boss said he had opted for the more radical option.

“We can improve delivery from about 14 years,” Winser said. “Halving that process to around seven that would line up much better with delivery of assets like offshore wind.

“We have to be much quicker than 11 years. Knocking off three years really isn’t enough. We will still have the networks too late and they will be inadequate. The process should be done in seven years because that lines up with networks and we think it can be done.”

These timescale reductions would enable the government’s objective of decarbonising the grid by 2035 to be achieved, even though “quite a few” projects already in train will continue to be dealt with by existing slower processes, he said: “I hope the process will gradually speed up but in broad terms the seven year delivery will allow us to get networks in place fast enough to get clean, cheap electricity as fast as possible.”

But Winser said it would be challenging to secure consent within the next four years for 17 major infrastructure projects, which he has previously identified as necessary.

“It’s not out of the question. It requires a very fast mobilisation,” he said, adding that the main “ballooning of timescales” is in work that must happen prior to planning applications being submitted, which could be remedied by the “absolutely critical” update of the national policy statements (NPSs) that the government is currently carrying out.

“Bringing forward the NPS update and giving Ofgem new clarity on driving toward net zero can help some of those projects,” he added.

He said his review would also cover the role of the NPSs, different ways of economically regulating network companies, technology and skills.

On criticism of Ofgem for not sufficiently anticipating the electricity network’s future needs when sanctioning investment decisions, Winser said that focusing on cutting expenditure used to be “appropriate” but was no longer.

“We’ve moved out of that phase, we need to build a lot more capacity because the need for networks is changing very fast. That means changing the way Ofgem looks at the costs of not meeting net zero targets such as congestion on the system as well as just capital costs: they need to take a broader view.”

Nick Winser will be speaking at Utility Week Forum this October. To find out more click here.