CBI responds to government plans to overhaul approach to grid connections

Jennifer Beckwith, CBI Senior Manager for Energy Transition, said: 

“Delayed grid connections have consistently blocked business investment for several years. The government is therefore absolutely right to consult on streamlining connectivity for demand projects, particularly given the UK’s strategy of electrifying heat, transport and industry.

“Prioritising ‘strategically important projects’ that bring jobs, investment and economic growth to communities across the country is the right approach to address a defunct and oversubscribed process that’s left major investors waiting up to 15 years to connect.

“Alongside planning reforms, speeding-up grid connection is essential to give both domestic and international investors greater confidence that large-scale, high-value and economically significant projects can move more rapidly from development to delivery.

“This is not only critical to achieving growth, it’s also fundamental to our energy transition. Faster, more reliable connections will unlock the tens of millions of pounds of investment available from electrification through clean power – one of the UK’s most significant opportunities for long‑term, sustainable growth”.