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Select committee: Industry and Regulators Committee

The energy grid and grid connections

Closed Opened 8 Jan 2025 Closed 4 Nov 2025

Industry and Regulators Committee Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗

Inquiry scope (the committee's words)
The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has launched an inquiry into the energy grid and grid connections. The inquiry will focus on the regulatory, planning and funding barriers to delivering energy infrastructure and the ability of the Government’s proposals to address them. The Committee will consider issues such as possible legal challenges which arise as a result of reforms to the connections queue and whether a move to locational pricing could help to reduce the need for additional grid investment.

Where it stands

The inquiry is closed, opened 8 January 2025.

The committee has published 1 report, most recently 1st Report - Power struggle: Delivering Great Britain’s electricity grid infrastructure on 4 June 2025.

The government's response

Published 5 August 2025. The deadline was 4 August 2025.

Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.

The government thanks the Committee and sets out progress on Clean Power 2030, agreeing with a number of recommendations (for example on Ofgem's Strategy and Policy Statement, the ASTI framework and recognising the SSEP and CSNP in planning) while pursuing reform within a single national wholesale price.

  • On wholesale pricing, the government has concluded that reforming while retaining a single national wholesale price is best, so it has not taken forward zonal pricing. It plans to publish a Reformed National Pricing Delivery Plan "later this year".
  • On Ofgem, the government "agrees" that ASTI principles should be embedded in future price controls and that Ofgem should aim to reduce reliance on uncertainty mechanisms, "where appropriate".
  • On planning, it agrees that the SSEP, CSNP and RESPs should be recognised in the planning system and will consider how "in due course". It expects to publish updated National Policy Statements "by the end of 2025".
  • On connections, NESO's timeline shows all developers receiving an updated connection offer "by May 2026". A Connections Accelerator Service for demand projects is expected to begin operating "at the end of 2025".

Read the government's response ↗ Report an error

Reports

All reports

Evidence

  • 9 oral evidence sessionsLatest 25 March 2025
  • 23 witnesses
All evidence

Recent activity

Meetings and visits

Reports

1 report

Oral evidence sessions

9 sessions

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Date Session and witnesses Source
25 Mar 2025
Oral evidence session
Emily Bourne · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Michael Shanks MP · Department for Energy Security and Net Zero 		View ↗
18 Mar 2025
Oral evidence session
Akshay Kaul · Ofgem, Eleanor Warburton · Ofgem 		View ↗
11 Mar 2025
Oral evidence session
James Norman · National Energy System Operator (NESO), Kayte O'Neill · National Energy System Operator (NESO), Matt Vickers · National Energy System Operator (NESO) 		View ↗
4 Mar 2025
Oral evidence session
Nick Winser CBE · Independent Government Advisor 		View ↗
25 Feb 2025
Oral evidence session
Andy Manning · Citizens Advice, Dr Ada Lee · Royal Town Planning Institute, Dr Pauleen Lane · Planning Inspectorate, Frank Aaskov · Manufacturers' Climate Change Group, Teodora Kaneva · techUK 		View ↗
4 Feb 2025
Oral evidence session
Jim Cardwell · Northern Powergrid, Mark Adolphus · UK Power Networks 		View ↗
28 Jan 2025
Oral evidence session
Jessica Hardwick · SSEN Transmission, Rob Salter-Church · National Grid Electricity Transmission 		View ↗
21 Jan 2025
Oral evidence session
Chris Hewett · Solar Energy UK, Kara Davies · Solar Energy UK, Matthew Ball · EDF Energy, Rachel Fletcher · Ofwat, Raj Roy · Centrica 		View ↗
14 Jan 2025
Oral evidence session
Charles Wood · Energy UK 		View ↗

Who gave evidence

23 witnesses

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WitnessOrganisationSessions
Akshay Kaul · Director of Infrastructure and Security of Supply Ofgem 1
Andy Manning · Energy System Transformation Head Citizens Advice 1
Charles Wood · Deputy Director, Policy (Systems) Energy UK 1
Chris Hewett · Chief Executive Solar Energy UK 1
Dr Ada Lee · Policy Specialist, Infrastructure and Climate Change Royal Town Planning Institute 1
Dr Pauleen Lane · Professional Lead, Infrastructure Planning Inspectorate 1
Eleanor Warburton · Director of Energy Systems Management and Security Ofgem 1
Emily Bourne · Director of Energy Systems and Networks Department for Energy Security and Net Zero 1
Frank Aaskov · Coordinator Manufacturers' Climate Change Group 1
James Norman · Head of Connections Strategy National Energy System Operator (NESO) 1
Jessica Hardwick · Head of Public Affairs and Policy SSEN Transmission 1
Jim Cardwell · Head of Energy Systems Policy Northern Powergrid 1
Kara Davies · Policy Manager Solar Energy UK 1
Kayte O'Neill · Chief Operating Officer National Energy System Operator (NESO) 1
Mark Adolphus · Director of Connections UK Power Networks 1
Matt Vickers · Director of Connections National Energy System Operator (NESO) 1
Matthew Ball · Senior Manager, Grid Policy EDF Energy 1
Michael Shanks MP · Minister for Energy Department for Energy Security and Net Zero 1
Nick Winser CBE · Electricity Networks Commissioner Independent Government Advisor 1
Rachel Fletcher · Chief Executive Ofwat 1
Raj Roy · General Counsel, UK and Ireland Centrica 1
Rob Salter-Church · Director of Regulation National Grid Electricity Transmission 1
Teodora Kaneva · Head of Smart Infrastructure and Systems techUK 1

Meetings & visits

1 item

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DateTypeDetailSource
3 Jun 2025 Formal meeting (private meeting) Not recorded · Room 1, Palace of Westminster