Living off the grid
THE shutdown of Heathrow airport suggests National Grid’s North Hyde electrical substation wasn’t up to the increasing demands being placed on it (certainly when it came to fire prevention) and puts the company’s less than impressive record on investing in its critical infrastructure in the spotlight.
The UK high-voltage transmission network is owned and operated by subsidiary company National Grid Electricity Transmission plc, which last year (2023/24) contributed £1.65bn in pre-tax profits to the National Grid group’s total £3.4bn. The transmission company did invest a chunky £1.57bn in plant and equipment, but this followed some relatively lean years under John Pettigrew, National Grid group chief executive since 2016.