United Infrastructure to lead UK data centre grid plan

United Infrastructure will lead an industry initiative to develop standardised electricity connection archetypes for UK data centres, following discussions with Ofgem and other stakeholders.

The programme will create common designs for data centres, substations, high-voltage compounds and other connection arrangements used to link projects to the electricity grid. The aim is to bring more consistency to network design and delivery as power demand rises from artificial intelligence and data storage.

The initiative emerged from a roundtable in Cardiff attended by Akshay Kaul, Director General of Infrastructure at Ofgem, and more than 30 senior figures from the energy, digital infrastructure and development sectors. Participants discussed grid connection reform, supply chain resilience, decentralised energy, workforce constraints, planning and network capacity.

For UK data centre developers, securing electricity connections has become a critical issue as demand for capacity grows faster than parts of the network can be expanded. Standardised connection models could help developers, network operators and contractors work from repeatable designs, reducing delays in approvals and delivery.

Industry push

United Infrastructure said stakeholders across the sector had asked it to coordinate the work. It will draw on input from organisations across the electricity infrastructure supply chain and share the resulting archetypes with stakeholders to inform future network delivery and regulatory discussions.

The Cardiff meeting highlighted the broader challenge facing the sector: how to deliver enough electricity infrastructure to support rapid growth in computing demand while managing wider electrification pressures across the economy. Data centres are becoming more prominent in that debate because of their large, often time-sensitive power requirements.

Akshay Kaul, Director General of Infrastructure at Ofgem, said: "The rapid growth in data centres presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the energy system. It was encouraging to see how technologies like fuel cells could complement the grid, and these insights will be important in shaping a flexible, resilient and future-ready energy system."

Alongside grid access, participants also examined the role of alternative and decentralised energy sources in helping projects move ahead where network reinforcement may take longer. Fuel cells were among the technologies discussed as possible complements to conventional grid supply.

Connection pressure

The work sits within a wider effort across the electricity networks sector to improve coordination between manufacturers, contractors, utilities and service providers. BEAMA and the Electricity Networks Association are also developing an Electricity Networks Sector Growth Plan to bring the supply chain into closer alignment on regulation, standards, workforce development and long-term investment.

This broader backdrop matters because grid expansion in the UK increasingly depends not only on policy and regulation, but also on whether the engineering and construction supply chain can deliver projects at pace. Common design templates for recurring connection types could give network operators and developers a clearer starting point for projects that would otherwise be handled on a bespoke basis.

United Infrastructure employs more than 2,200 people and works across utility and social infrastructure. Its utility business designs, builds and maintains energy, water, power and telecoms infrastructure for major network owners and operators in the UK.

Neil Armstrong, Chief Executive Officer of United Infrastructure, said: "To be asked to lead such an important piece of work is a real credit to the engineering teams we have within United Infrastructure. As demand for data centres grows, we are seeing unprecedented interest in our gas-to-power solutions. Being recognised in this way is testament to the work we are doing to accelerate 'time to power' for data centres across the UK, many of which are now frequently classed as nationally significant infrastructure."

The first suite of archetypes will cover data centres, substations, high-voltage compounds and other common connection arrangements used in electricity network delivery.