Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Electricity Grid Connections

Tuesday 24 March 2026 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • The grid connections reform process aimed to boost investor confidence by removing zombie projects and prioritising shovel-ready ones.
  • NESO delays have caused developers to wait for gate 2 connection offers even for projects scheduled for 2026 and 2027.
  • Over 300 GW has been cleared from a queue of over 600 GW, and NESO and transmission owners are partnering to expedite the issuance of gate 2 connections.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Sarah Gibson Lib Dem Chippenham
Energy
Context

The Liberal Democrat MP is concerned about delays in the grid connections reform process, which was intended to improve investor confidence by removing zombie projects and prioritising shovel-ready projects.

Question

What recent progress has been made on improving connections to the electricity grid? The grid connections reform process was designed to boost investor confidence but repeated delays from NESO mean developers are still waiting for gate 2 connection offers even for projects due in 2026 and 2027. This is damaging investor confidence, so how will the Government ensure NESO and network companies work at pace to issue those connections?

Answer from Michael Shanks

We have cleared out 300 GW from a queue of over 600 GW, but delays remain. The first gate 2 offers are going out now with NESO and transmission owners working together to expedite the process. I will ensure this happens.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The timeline for issuing gate 2 connections was not specified in concrete terms.

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Q2 Sarah Gibson Lib Dem Chippenham
Climate Energy
Context

Concerns arise over delays in the grid connections reform process, impacting investor confidence.

Question

The grid connections reform was intended to improve investor confidence by removing zombie projects and prioritising shovel-ready ones. However, repeated NESO delays mean developers are still waiting for gate 2 offers even for projects due in 2026-27. Given the importance of connection reform for clean power 2030 ambitions, will the Minister ensure NESO and network companies issue these connections as soon as possible?

Answer from Michael Shanks

Over 600 GW was in the queue, with 300 GW cleared. The process has delayed due to complexity but is now moving faster with NESO and transmission owners partnering to expedite issuing gate 2 connections. I will ensure this happens.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The Minister did not specify a clear timeline for future improvements.

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