- National Grid has launched the next phase of its Electricity Transmission Partnership (ETP), awarding contracts worth £1.2 billion to five delivery partners – Balfour Beatty, M Group, Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, Murphy and OTW – to upgrade more than 1,000 km of existing overhead lines across England and Wales.
- The partnership adopts a long‑term, collaborative delivery approach, rewarding performance and enabling suppliers to plan ahead, invest in training and share innovation.
- National Grid expects to create about 6,000 full‑time jobs, including 2,000 apprentices and graduates, through its investment programmes.
Britain’s electricity grid is poised for its biggest overhaul in decades. National Grid has kicked off the next phase of its Electricity Transmission Partnership – a programme that will see £1.2 billion of upgrades to more than 1,000 km of overhead lines.
The scheme, part of a wider RIIO‑T3 plan to invest £31 billion by 2031, aims to boost capacity, accommodate new renewable generation and prepare the network for surging electricity demand.
The ETP reconductoring initiative focuses on replacing ageing conductors on existing transmission routes with higher‑capacity cables. This technique leverages current pylons and rights‑of‑way, reducing the need for new lines and expediting delivery.
The first tranche includes more than 1,000 km of overhead lines, representing a significant portion of the transmission network in England and Wales. National Grid has appointed five firms – Balfour Beatty, M Group, Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, Murphy and OTW – to deliver the works under a partnership model that encourages collaboration and performance‑based rewards.
Reconductoring may not be glamorous, but it is essential – especially in light of energy transition goals. Upgrading the conductor and insulator materials allows lines to carry more electricity, accommodating the growth of offshore wind, solar and electrified heating and transport.
The approach is significantly cheaper and quicker than building new corridors, and it improves network resilience by modernising equipment.
Collaborative supply chain strategy
The ETP builds on National Grid’s efforts to overhaul how it works with contractors. In its first phase, launched last year, the partnership focused on substation upgrades; now it extends to overhead lines.
The collaborative model allows partners to plan years ahead, share expertise and invest in training facilities. Omexom opened a multidisciplinary training centre in Yorkshire in 2023, Morgan Sindall launched its first overhead line training centre in Staffordshire in 2024, and Murphy plans to open a high‑voltage training facility in Nottinghamshire.
These investments should mitigate labour shortages and ensure consistent standards across projects.
The programme is closely aligned with the Great Grid Partnership and HVDC supply chain framework, which together will deliver over £28 billion of investment into transmission and interconnection.
National Grid estimates it will need around 6,000 new employees across its RIIO‑T3 plan. The overhead line upgrade alone will support thousands of jobs in engineering, construction and manufacturing, as well as apprenticeships.
Indeed, the UK’s decarbonisation strategy hinges on delivering vast amounts of new renewable power to consumers. The government’s target of a fully decarbonised power sector by 2035 and ‘net zero’ emissions by 2050 requires rapid grid expansion.
Yet planning delays and local opposition make building new lines challenging. By upgrading existing infrastructure, National Grid can quickly add capacity and connect new wind and solar projects. The reconductoring initiative will also reduce bottlenecks that cause curtailment of renewable generation.
While reconductoring avoids the controversies of new lines, it still involves working on live infrastructure, requiring careful management of outages and safety. Supply chain constraints could impede the roll‑out if specialised conductors or trained linemen are in short supply.
The £1.2 billion tranche is only the start; National Grid plans to upgrade around 3,500 km of lines through 2031. Meeting that goal will test the capacity of contractors and regulators alike.
