TO BE PUBLISHED June 2026
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This conference will examine next steps for upgrading the UK’s electricity grid.
It will bring together stakeholders and policymakers to assess priorities for investment, planning and delivery of electricity networks to support clean power targets and energy resilience objectives.
Discussion will draw on key findings from the House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee’s Delivering Great Britain’s electricity grid infrastructure 2025 report, which warned that the UK is at risk of missing the policy target of decarbonising the electricity system by 95% by 2030 unless it increases the pace of grid upgrades.
Sessions in the agenda will consider key issues and latest thinking on practical ways forward. Amid wider reforms to electricity market arrangements and connections, areas for discussion include priorities for network planning and investment, enabling faster and more reliable connection of new generation, and meeting increasing demand from large‑scale computing and data centres.
Market reform, network charging & system planning
Attendees will examine the interaction of grid planning and investment decisions with forthcoming reform to market arrangements and network charging.
Sessions will consider priorities for the Centralised Strategic Network Plan in guiding network reinforcement, funding and investment options, as well as its coordination with the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan and Regional Energy Strategic Plans. Delegates will assess how reform to Transmission Network Use of System (TNUoS) and connection charges can best support efficient siting decisions for new generation - as well as approaches to balancing investment with consumer affordability.
Connection reform, queue management & system capacity
Strategic options for clearing and managing the connection queue backlog will be discussed, following the surge in demand for connections.
Discussion will assess how contracted energy projects - such as those supported through Contracts for Difference following Allocation Round 7 and Ofgem’s Long Duration Energy Storage cap and floor scheme - can be aligned with connection capacity and market reform. We expect discussion to also reflect concerns that connections reform will favour short-term generation projects, looking at how to address the post-2030 pipeline and long-term strategic alignment.
This includes how readiness and strategic alignment criteria should be applied across generation and demand, and ways to address speculative and non-viable applications. Delegates will consider issues around perceived fairness and approaches to maintaining transparency and accountability in queue management, including how applications from high electricity demand users - such as data centres - should be treated within prioritisation frameworks, as well as the role of dispute resolution processes.
Infrastructure delivery, planning reform & supply chain capacity
Implications of recent and forthcoming planning reform for consenting, coordinating, and delivering grid infrastructure will be examined. This includes the updated National Policy Statements EN-1, EN-3, and EN-5 - designating electricity network infrastructure as a Critical National Priority - alongside revisions to the National Planning Policy Framework, as well as changes to pre-application consultation, post-consent amendments, and flexible consenting routes under the Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025. Delegates will assess concerns regarding inconsistent interpretation and weighting of CNP status in consenting, and questions around balancing critical status urgency with biodiversity and environmental requirements, and community engagement.
Sessions will also look at what may be needed to bridge gaps between policy ambitions and operational delivery. Delegates will examine network build requirements and constraints in supply chains, as well as manufacturing capacity and workforce skills, and their implications for addressing persistent connection delays.
Discussion will consider chain and procurement challenges, looking at progress of Ofgem’s Advanced Procurement Mechanism, and options for enhancing visibility of procurement requirements, and integration of skills and workforce planning. Delegates will review the interim Electricity Networks Sector Growth Plan, assessing options for supporting domestic manufacturing capacity and workforces, alongside delivery of network investment programmes - such as the Great Grid Upgrade and the RIIO-T3 investment plan - and their role in supporting economic growth and objectives set out in the Industrial Strategy.
Digitalisation, AI & system resilience
Looking forward to the forthcoming Energy Resilience Strategy, attendees will consider ways to strengthen resilience, minimise disruption, and protect asset quality, while preparing for rising electricity demand.
Delegates will also consider the way forward for innovation in grid management, including potential opportunities for the deployment of AI, following the Government’s Technology Adoption Review and in anticipation of the review of AI use in electricity networks expected this summer. Discussion will explore the application of digital tools for improved forecasting, flexibility, and system optimisation, alongside practical use cases for AI in grid planning, asset monitoring, predictive maintenance, and operational decision-making.
All delegates will be able to contribute to the output of the conference, which will be shared with parliamentary, ministerial, departmental and regulatory offices, and more widely. This includes the full proceedings and additional articles submitted by delegates. As well as key stakeholders, those already due to attend include officials from the Department for Business and Trade, Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Department for the Economy NI, Great British Energy, Health and Safety Executive, House of Commons Library, Ministry of Defence, Planning Inspectorate, the Welsh Government, and The Scottish Government.
