ScottishPower’s transmission business SP Energy Networks has started its five-year £12 billion rewiring programme of the central and southern Scotland electricity grid.
Creating 1,400 direct jobs and supporting over 11,000 more in the supply chain, the T3 investment will see 12 new major substations built and over 570km of lines upgraded or replaced.
SP Energy Networks said the network overhaul will help increase grid capacity, strengthen Britain’s energy security, reduce constraint costs and help homes and businesses move towards an all-electric future.
SP Energy Networks CEO Nicola Connelly said: “The next five years are pivotal to achieving Britain’s clean power ambitions. Our electricity networks are the backbone of the country’s electricity system, getting the power from where it’s generated to homes and businesses across the country.
“Between now and 2031 we are undertaking the biggest overhaul of the electricity grid since its inception, with tens of thousands of people helping transform and modernise aging infrastructure.”
SP Energy Networks, part of ScottishPower, owns four regulated electricity network businesses in the UK and keeps electricity flowing to around 12 million people across a network spanning more than 170,000 kilometres.
The ScottishPower group, owned by Basque energy giant Iberdrola, is investing £24 billion from 2024 to 2028, with two thirds being spent upgrading and building new transmission and distribution infrastructure to support UK growth.
UK and Irish supply chain companies are benefiting from the rewiring programme. Kirby Group Engineering, headquartered in Limerick, has worked with SP Energy Networks for the last 13 years. It has now secured a place on its strategic framework which will see it and 18 other suppliers benefit from up to £5.4 billion in contracts over the next 10 years.
Kirby has opened two offices in Scotland and has moved to a bigger Glasgow office to house its expanding workforce on account of securing its order book. It now employs 180 people, with 70 extra jobs already created and plans of more to come, thanks to the scale of investment.
Michael Murray, Power & Renewables Director, Kirby Group Engineering, said: “Through our strategic partnership with SP Energy Networks, we are expanding our operations, creating employment opportunities and scaling our training and development programmes.
“The delivery of this critical infrastructure upgrade is already creating high‑quality, skilled jobs and will leave a legacy of social value in communities across Scotland.”