Facilitating sharing of information for potential generation connections consortiums

Facilitating Generation Connections

Where there are areas of our network which have little or no capacity available for connecting further generation, new generation connection applicants may be required to contribute to the cost of network reinforcement to provide them with their connection and generation capacity.

There can also be cases where a developer’s generation is to be established in a location which is remote from the existing WPD network and requires extensive connection assets to connect them.

In both these cases, the costs of the network reinforcement or new connection assets can hamper the viability of the applicant’s scheme.

One potential option available to developers to overcome this is to share these connection charges with other generators’ schemes wishing to connect to the same area of the network; by applying as a consortium for the combined connection works, the reinforcement which may be triggered, or the new connection asset costs, may be shared between the parties in the consortium.

In order to facilitate DG developers coming together to submit a joint application for their connection schemes, we have developed a facility on our website for you and other DG developers to share information on the details of your development and application.
The register for each of our four geographic areas allow you and other developers to contact each other to discuss the potential for you to come together and form a consortium.
Register here
Legal information
ANY USER OF THE FACILITY MUST ENSURE THAT SUCH USE IS IN COMPLIANCE WITH ALL APPLICABLE LAWS INCLUDING COMPETITION LAW.
By registering using the form in the link below, you are agreeing:
- for your information to be shared and published in the downloadable registers below;
- to our Terms of Use;
- and to our Privacy Policy.
The consortium may then approach WPD to discuss the viability of making a combined application for your multiple connection sites. Where there is agreement to proceed with a combined application, WPD will then issue the consortium with a formal offer for the connection works required to provide a complete connections scheme.
The facility is designed to facilitate consortium applications to increase efficiency and to generate savings for DG developers who would otherwise find the costs of connection works, reinforcement and new connection asset costs prohibitively expensive.
This facility is not intended to confer an advantage on particular users, but to allow any connection costs allocated to a consortium to be shared fairly and properly between DG developers who are part of a single consortium arrangement.
The increase in distributed generation has led to the electricity network becoming constrained across much of the UK.
In 2015 Western Power Distribution and Regen SW worked collectively on the ‘Bridgwater Consortium’ trial. The trial looked to permit grid reinforcement that could be high-priced for individual distributed generators to fund, by focussing on the potential for consortia of developers to pay for the cost of grid reinforcement using the powers under Section 22 of the Electricity Act.
A full copy of the trial report can be found here.