NETWORK DEVELOPMENT PLAN
SP Manweb
Sharing data is key to the efficiency of the energy system as we decarbonise to Net Zero. It enables customers and stakeholders to assess market opportunities and participate in flexibility markets as
well as promote network companies and key stakeholders to work together to facilitate efficient whole system planning and operation.
The aim of the Network Development Plan is to bridge this gap providing a medium term outlook to our stakeholders.
It forecasts the unused network capacity that can accommodate future demand and generation growth, and outlines our planned interventions that will increase network capacity.
Unused network capacity forecasts are detailed in the Network Scenario Headroom Report (NSHR) and are provided for every year for the first 10 years, and then for every five years after that out to 2050.
These forecasts can be visualised in the graphics below.
These forecasts take account of known planned interventions that will increase network capacity. Details of our planned interventions can be found in the
‘SP Manweb Parts 1 and 2 Report’.
Low carbon technologies (LCTs) are at the heart of the Net Zero transition, and our electricity networks must scale up to meet the additional requirements placed upon it. The starting point for our Network Development Plan and Network Scenario Headroom forecasts is our Distribution Future Energy Scenarios which forecast the growth in LCTs expected to connect to our distribution networks. The capacity that is required by these new LCTs will therefore also increase, meaning capacity headroom will reduce. The effect on headroom is different for the growth in both demand and generation technologies, which can be explored on this page.
A summary of forecast LCT uptake from DFES24, on which we built this NDP iteration, is shown in the table below.
2028
SP Manweb
Battery electric vechicles
(millions)
Heat pumps
(millions)
Distributed generation and storage (GW)
Now
0.02
0.01
3.24
High scenario
0.47
0.31
+3.19 Additional Generation
Baseline scenario
0.30
0.16
+2.06 Additional Generation
Low scenario
0.30
0.16
+1.49 Additional Generation
| 2028 | SP Manweb | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Battery electric vechicles (millions) |
Heat pumps (millions) |
Distributed generation and storage (GW) | |
| Now | 0.02 | 0.01 | 3.24 |
| High scenario | 0.47 | 0.31 | +3.19 Additional Generation |
| Baseline scenario | 0.30 | 0.16 | +2.06 Additional Generation |
| Low scenario | 0.30 | 0.16 | +1.49 Additional Generation |
In the sections below you can explore the data in more detail.
'Primary demand groups’ are groups of primary substations in SP Manweb that feed the high voltage (HV) network which is predominantly at 11kV. Several geographically separate primary substations can be electrically interconnected to form one supply area. Multiple primary demand groups are fed by a Grid Demand Group. The primary substations each supply several areas of secondary low voltage (LV) network, which in turn supply the majority of homes and businesses. Some medium-large demand and generation customers also directly connect at HV.
Unused Network Headroom (by scenario)
The chart below shows the aggregated headroom with the option to filter by substation, this will let you identify when and where capacity is available on our network - we encourage you to explore where capacity is available based on this chart and the map below.
To explore the NDP map below, please select a year and headroom type of interest
In this map you can visualise the demand/generation capacity on a map and view how the forecast headroom changes out to 2050. You can switch between scenarios and filter for headroom type (demand/generation). Tip: use the map to find substations of interest & analyse the data with line graph.
Note: We have established 'Demand' as the default filter for Headroom Type and 'BV' as the default filter for Scenario.
Pick a substation on the map
-
Headroom TypeMax Unused Headroom (MW)Min Unused Headroom (MW)
Click on to see the data in more detail.