Western Power Distribution (WPD) is investing an extra £3.5m into the development of its electricity network that will help to support the connection of new customers, including green projects over the next two years in Nottingham.
The investment will not only play a critical role in driving a green recovery that will benefit local jobs and the economy, but will provide key network upgrades to support the emerging technologies needed for a Net Zero future, including the installation of much needed electric vehicle charge points.
The company, which looks after the electricity network across Nottinghamshire, will upgrade and build new electrical infrastructure and substations, also helping to enable more green developments, such as electric vehicle chargers, mass heat pump installations and renewable generation, such as solar parks, to connect to the electricity network.
This investment will also support the future electricity needs in the local areas as our reliance on electricity to heat our homes and travel increases.
WPD expects that up to 1.5million electric vehicles and 600,000 heat pumps will be used to keep us moving and heat our homes by 2028.
In Nottingham, WPD will install a new substation in the city centre, adding 24 megawatts of extra capacity for demand and 18 megawatts capacity for renewable generation such as solar farms.
This extra capacity equates to the installation of over 6,500 heat pumps or around 500 rapid EV chargers to be connected in the city.
This will support the forthcoming growth in low carbon technologies in the coming years and the City Council’s ambition to make Nottingham the first carbon neutral city by 2028.
Four investment projects across Nottinghamshire will be completed over the next two years, with schemes also taking place in Watnall, Rufford and Carlton on Trent.
These projects were shortlisted with the help of information provided by a number of local authorities and organisations who provided details of forthcoming green development schemes that demonstrated environmental and societal benefits.
The projects range in size, with some supporting small villages or towns with new local substations or upgraded electricity cabling, to larger schemes benefitting a wider area.
Once complete, the schemes will provide greater network capacity, facilitating new connections in an area, including green developments, such as superfast electric vehicle charging in towns and along trunk roads and motorways. Green developments like these, will ensure that drivers will have the charging facilities necessary when travelling across the country and that there is sufficient charging available for the influx of electric vehicles on our roads and ahead of the ban on new petrol and diesel car sales by the UK government.
Graham Halladay, WPD’s Operations Director, commented: “The investment is another signal of our determination to support the country’s Net Zero ambitions.
“During the pandemic, we have continued to innovate and find ways of lowering carbon footprint, and we will now play a pivotal role in driving a green recovery.
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“Our wide-ranging projects will help with some of our biggest Net Zero challenges, including electric vehicle range anxiety, battery storage and the decarbonisation of our heating systems. The time is now to cut emissions and ensure the clean and sustainable future of generations to come and we are proud and delighted to play a vital role in this.”
More information on WPD’s green recovery investments can be found at: www.westernpower.co.uk/green-recovery
