Britain’s electricity transmission network – a series of wires, overhead, underground and subsea cables and substations – is owned and operated by three companies known as transmission owners (TOs); SP Energy Networks, National Grid Electricity Transmission and Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks.
Along with the Energy Networks Association (ENA), the three TOs have come together to launch an exciting new campaign; Moving the Grid Forward. This campaign lays out the importance of our journey towards creating a national energy network, ensuring our grid can handle the increasing demands of a digital world and move us forward towards an all-electric future.
At SP Energy Networks, we are responsible for the transmission network in Central and Southern Scotland. Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks look after the rest of Scotland’s network and National Grid Electricity Transmission own and operate the network in England and Wales.
As transmission owners we have a responsibility to ensure the electricity generated can be transported across the country and onto your homes and businesses. With electricity demand set to double by 2050 our grid needs a major overhaul – the largest since its inception - to reconfigure the electricity motorways to better serve a modern, flexible, greener energy system and help the UK become self-sufficient in homegrown, affordable energy.
We currently rely on importing expensive foreign fuels to generate this electricity, but if we grow the grid, we can create an expanded, resilient network that will unlock the opportunity of UK renewables and transport the clean power the country needs for generations to come. With Britain holding 40% of Europe’s wind energy potential, the opportunities are huge though barriers remain, including a planning system that is currently undergoing reform.
The investment and focused work to build a future facing grid would help to grow the economy. It would also help reinforce the UK’s international leadership on clean energy, that’s seen the UK create the second largest offshore wind fleet in the world.
To help convey the benefits of creating a future facing grid, the public information campaign, Moving the Grid Forward, will continue to feature adverts and an online resource of additional information.
Watch the campaign video and find out more at movingthegridforward.co.uk