UK nationalises electricity grid operator

The new entity is called the National Energy System Operator (Neso). This is the culmination of a long-standing project to regain control of these operations.

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An electricity pylon near homes, south of London, on August 23, 2024. (JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)

Launch scheduled for October 1. The British government announced on Friday September 13 that it would pay 630 million pounds (746 million euros) to buy the British electricity network operator ESO from the private company National Grid.

The new entity, called the National Energy System Operator (Neso), “will help connect new production projects to the electricity grid”the Labour government argued in a statement issued jointly with the company. The creation of Neso and the transfer of the network operator (responsible for supervising the balance between supply and demand) to the state had been initiated by the previous Conservative government.

National Grid retains ownership of its physical networks (including cables and pylons in England and Wales), a company spokesperson told AFP.

The public company will be “a single body responsible for overseeing the strategic planning and design of the country’s electricity and gas networks”the statement said. It will also work in partnership with Great British Energy, the new public company wanted by the Labour government, which came to power in July, to invest in floating wind turbines, tidal energy and nuclear power.


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