UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks said upgrading the grid is “a vital part of how we deliver secure, homegrown energy and unlock economic growth across the country.”
He added: “It is a moment of national renewal – upgrading what was built largely in the 1960s for the modern age and is our route to bringing down electricity bills for households across the country.
“It’s vital we build again as a country and we are determined those communities which host pylons should benefit, which is why we’re bringing down the energy bills of those hosting this vital national infrastructure.”
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says Britain’s electricity grid was largely designed for an era when power came from coal and gas-fired power stations, and now needs major upgrades to cope with growing amounts of renewable energy.
Ministers say the lack of capacity means some wind farms are sometimes paid to switch off because there is not enough network infrastructure available to carry the electricity to homes and businesses that need it.
Greg Jackson, chief executive of the UK’s biggest domestic energy supplier, Octopus Energy, said the electricity system is inefficient, brittle and expensive.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the discount scheme was a “positive first step”, adding that last year the UK spent more than £1bn paying wind farms to turn off on windy days.
“We should just be giving that electricity more cheaply to the people and businesses who live in the areas where we’re generating it,” he said.
“By doing that, you’d be able to stop wasting that money and instead put the electricity to use cutting bills for those people. But crucially cutting bills for everybody else as well because it’s less wasteful.”
