National Gridlock: Octopus calls for queue jumping to meet energy goals
Octopus Energy Generation has unveiled a five point plan to speed up connections for new renewable projects to the grid.
This includes ‘queue jumping’ for projects further along in the development process, and increasing competition for connections – ending National Grid’s status as a monopoly provider.
The speed of connections for new projects to the grid has been a source of frustration for multiple energy providers looking to build green infrastructure such as wind turbines, battery storage systems and solar farms.
Currently, National Grid oversees the queue on a first-come first-serve basis, with projects waiting years for a connection, often stuck behind less-developed sites that entered the queue first.
In its new report – End the Gridlock – Octopus is proposing that projects further ahead in terms of financing, planning and development are allowed to overtake projects that are struggling to get off the ground.
It also argues that third party operators connecting projects to the grid would speed up transmissions.
Zoisa North-Bond, chief executive of Octopus Energy Generation, said: “The single biggest blocker to renewables is waiting to connect to the grid, so we’ve identified quick wins that can genuinely make a difference today and connect wind and solar farms at pace. If we act fast, we can reduce reliance on expensive, polluting fossil fuels, and jump-start a cheaper, greener energy future for British homes and businesses.”
Octopus’ five point plan also includes proposals enforced sunset clauses on grid offers, creating ‘zones’ ripe for developing renewables quickly, and collaboration between developers to share and reduce connection costs.
The energy firm argues the list of changes could unlock new wind and solar farms with clean electricity for around 2.5m homes – covering the electricity needs for households in Manchester, Birmingham and Leeds combined every year.
National Grid has previously told Morning Wire it is bound by its licence to manage connections this way, with rules preventing them from making anticipatory judgements about the viability of projects ahead of receiving a connection request.
In the last four years, the number of projects applying to connect to the UK power system has quadrupled, and this year the number is expected to rise even further.
According to National Grid, 60 per cent of the projects in the pipeline to connect have secured connection dates within 12 months of their requested date.
To speed up connections to the transmission network, it has brought in a one-off connections queue amnesty for developers to leave the pipeline if their projects are no longer viable without being fined.
It also is proposing to bring in development milestones for projects to maintain their position in the queue.
A National Grid spokesperson said: “We welcome the report from Octopus, and agree that significant reform is needed across policy, regulation, and the energy industry to speed up the connections process across all networks. Collaboration between Ofgem, government and the industry is critical to drive the necessary reform at the pace needed to deliver net zero.”