Your Grid Connections

Capacity Crunch:

GB Grid Connection Challenges

By Damian McCabe

With aging infrastructure and connection queues growing daily, the capacity crunch is a major hurdle affecting electrification schemes & grid connections across Great Britain. Developers know the challenges of obtaining land rights, navigating planning permission, and other barriers required to get “shovel ready.” However, developers may not fully understand the grid’s constraints and the significance of the connection queue. The project development triangle of land, finance, and planning has now evolved into a square to include the grid as a crucial fourth factor.

The reality is that electrification is no longer a simple plug-and-play solution. The current network’s capacity limits the speed at which schemes can be energised. The Connection Action Plan highlights that nearly half of the transmission connection projects have an offered connection date at least five years into the future, and more than one in five will wait over ten years.

The increasing complexity of getting connected to the grid has resulted in the need for developers to become more educated in all things grid to understand the constraints their project may face.

Connection Optioneering is a vital stage in the race for capacity; it requires an understanding of the local network relative to your project and will highlight any known constraints or issues that may impact your project cost and/or timescales, such as planned reinforcements or development plans. It may also identify project-specific work that your scheme may trigger, such as cable or transformer upgrades.

Secondly, understanding your connection offer. There is more than meets the eye when it comes to your connection offer. A connection offer from a network company provides no certainty. It guarantees you a place in the capacity queue but does not provide any certainty on costs or timescales.

As an example of this, eSmart Networks recently received a connection offer that was delayed until 2028 due to required reinforcements in the local distribution network that was already in progress. However, this scheme was caveated with the requirement to undergo a Transmission Impact Assessment, which resulted in a change of the connection date to 2037. eSmart Networks, using their knowledge of the local and wider network, worked alongside the DNO and obtained a connection option this side of 2030 for a larger capacity, which aligns with the client’s grid goals.

Finally, the need to engage with the DNO is becoming more common as each day passes. Each DNO has its constraints, whether at distribution or transmission level or just the quirks of its network. The gift of “speaking DNO” is as valuable as ever in the current connection climate.

A thorough understanding of the technical and regulatory environment will aid you in communicating effectively with DNOs. This will enable you to find any potential solutions to any constraints or issues that may arise. Additionally, it will assist the Design Engineer in gaining an understanding of the requirements of your scheme.

Demonstrating your willingness to collaborate rather than clash with the DNO is key. Working alongside the DNO design engineer to identify any constraints or issues that may impact the scheme from an early stage may save time and ensure that the scheme proceeds without any avoidable delays.

 

eSmart Networks is here to help navigate the end-to-end process of getting connected and provide certainty on grid connections for all types of development across the UK. With the combined capability of our Grid Consultancy team, Electrical & Civil design teams, and Operational delivery teams, no one is better placed to ensure your grid connection needs are met.

 

Contact our team today

enquiries@esmartnetworks.co.uk

+44 (0)1376 332 689

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