We invest in innovation to solve real-world problems: Lowering costs, supporting job growth and renewable energy, and preparing the grid for tomorrow’s demands. Whether it’s helping a family stay warm during a storm or enabling a new business to thrive with reliable power, our work is grounded in impact.
The latest technology improving our energy networks
AiDash: boosting biodiversity on our sites
Using AI, satellites and environmental data, AiDash helps us to better preserve and even enhance natural habitats across our infrastructure sites.
AiDash: boosting biodiversity on our sites
Fault location, isolation and service restoration
'FLISR' technology lets us find and fix faults on our networks faster than ever, improving response times when outages occur and creating a more resilient grid.
Fault location, isolation and service restoration
Wireless power transmission
The idea of wireless electricity has been around for many decades, but now technology developments could make ‘beaming’ power a reality.
Wireless power transmission
Emerald AI: reducing data centre power demand
Emerald AI is showing how AI-powered data centres can enhance the UK’s electricity grid and speed up the connection of new data centres to the grid.
Emerald AI: reducing data centre power demand
Robotics
Spot® is a high-tech robot dog that we use to carry out critical safety inspections and detect issues with equipment at sites. Watch this video of him in action.
Dynamic Line Rating (DLR) technology
LineVision DLR technology can help to unlock additional capacity on our overhead power lines, allowing more power to flow to homes and businesses.
Dynamic Line Rating (DLR) technology
SF6 anti-leak technology
Molten metal technology uses low-melting-point molten metal to rapidly fix leaks of sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) - one of the most potent greenhouse gases - in our substations.
SF6 anti-leak technology
Power flow controllers
We’re working with Smart Wires develop a tool to coordinate the installation and operation of advanced power flow control (APFC) devices that can help resolve bottlenecks in electricity flow.
Power flow controllersArtificial intelligence (AI)
We’re trialling and adopting innovative and state-of-the-art AI technologies to develop smarter grid solutions and evolve our energy systems.
Preventing digging damage with Urbint AI
Excavation damage to underground infrastructure can be costly and also pose a risk to public safety. Urbint uses AI to help us predict and prevent damage caused by digging.
Preventing digging damage with Urbint AI
Autonomous drones
Autonomous drones can perform pilot-free infrastructure inspections. A cloud-based AI model processes the data and images collected by the drone, automatically detecting defects and producing near real-time asset condition reports.
Autonomous drones
Exodigo underground infrastructure mapping
Exodigo’s non-intrusive subsurface imaging platform helps to map underground infrastructure by providing a digital, geolocated 3D map of buried assets.
Exodigo underground infrastructure mapping
OceanBrain undersea cable monitoring
OceanBrain is a digital tool developed by National Grid Partners, that modernises how undersea cables are monitored. It combines complex data sources with machine learning to automatically quantify the risk of potential damage.
OceanBrain undersea cable monitoring
Helicopter LiDAR data
The helicopter unit for our distribution network uses Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data to comprehensively survey network assets and any adjacent vegetation.
Helicopter LiDAR data
Cathodic Pipe Protection machine learning
Cathodic Pipe Protection (CPP) is a predictive model that detects past patterns to help us anticipate future work and estimates the probability that each test point in our underground US gas network would fail an inspection.
The energy industry’s first Silicon Valley-based investment and innovation group
National Grid Partners brings together more than 150 worldwide utilities with the entrepreneurs who are working to solve the power industry’s toughest challenges.
We find the boldest ideas - from university labs to established companies - and turn them into impactful, scalable technology solutions for the energy demands of today and the future.
A state-of-the-art testing facility: Deeside Innovation Centre
The Deeside Centre for Innovation (DCI) is the first facility in Europe where assets associated with electricity networks can be investigated and tested in a safe modified substation environment, prior to being rolled out on live transmission and distribution systems.
UK-first trial of AI grid technology successfully demonstrates the ability of data centres to adjust power needs
UK-first trial of AI grid technology successfully demonstrates the ability of data centres to adjust power needs
National Grid unveils award-winning new Digital Twin and Data Visualisation Tool to accelerate network planning
National Grid unveils award-winning new Digital Twin and Data Visualisation Tool to accelerate network planning
National Grid, TenneT Germany launch GriffinLink, a first of a kind project to maximise offshore wind
National Grid, TenneT Germany launch GriffinLink, a first of a kind project to maximise offshore wind