Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN), a subsidiary of British utility SSE, is set to invest 4.1 billion pounds ($5.7 billion) in its networks and services from 2023-2028.
SSEN will invest £400 million for improving service for customers and digitalising systems; £2.2 billion in asset reliability and resilience, with half of this targeted investment in network resilience to create a foundation for net zero demands; and over £1 billion to accelerate net zero for communities, including proactive investment in network and flexible solutions to deliver an additional 2GW of new network capacity.
All expenditure, including general running costs of £500 million, is subject to a year-on-year efficiency saving of 0.5 percent.
SSEN is responsible for operating and maintaining electricity distribution networks, supplying 3.8 million homes and businesses.
The British government’s climate change advisers have said that a shift to low-carbon technologies could almost treble demand on electricity networks by 2050.
In SSEN’s distribution network areas alone, electric vehicle ownership is forecast to increase from 30,000 today to 5 million by 2050, with 2.5 million heat pumps installed during the same period, the company said.
SSEN in its new business plan for 2023-2028 said it will need to accelerate investment in the smart and flexible electricity networks that will meet new demand for electricity, while keeping costs down for consumers.
SSEN has submitted a draft of the plan to energy market regulator Ofgem and it could revise before final submission to Ofgem in December this year.
The need to transform our energy system to address the climate emergency has never been clearer and it is critical that local electricity networks are an enabler rather than a constraint as we work toward a shared net zero future, said Chris Burchell, managing director, SSEN Distribution.