The Government has set a commitment to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and an ambition to connect 50 GW of offshore wind by 2030 – enough energy to power every home in the country.

To achieve this, offshore wind is being developed at scale and around 60% of the current offshore wind projects will come ashore along the East Coast.

Couple this with new nuclear generation proposed at Sizewell C and greater interconnection with countries across the North Sea, we expect to see a significant increase in the level of renewable and low carbon electricity generation connecting in East Anglia.

While our existing high voltage electricity network in East Anglia has been sufficient until today, it doesn’t have the capability needed to reliably and securely transport all the energy that will be connected by 2030 while working to the required standards.

In the first half of this decade, we are investing significantly in upgrading the existing network, but that still won’t deliver the capability that is needed. We need to reinforce the region’s network and to increase the network capability to carry the clean green energy that is proposed.

We are proposing to build approximately 183 km of new electricity transmission reinforcement between Norwich and Tilbury. This will be made up mostly of overhead line and pylons, along with some underground cables and a new 400 kV substation. Our proposals are part of The Great Grid Upgrade – the largest overhaul of the grid in generations.

Norwich to Tilbury will play a vital role in delivering electricity efficiently, reliably, and safely and will support the UK’s move to reduce carbon emissions.

We are committed to working with local communities as we develop our plans. We want local residents to have the opportunity to access the new jobs, business opportunities and positive biodiversity and environmental improvements that The Great Grid Upgrade can deliver.

We have changed the name of the project from East Anglia Green Energy Enablement (GREEN) to Norwich to Tilbury as part of The Great Grid Upgrade. All our projects that are part of The Great Grid Upgrade will include specific locations in their names to make it easy for people to understand what and where we are proposing to build new grid infrastructure. 

The name of our project may have changed but our focus remains the same – to bring new sources of renewable energy to homes and businesses across East Anglia and the UK. 

Norwich to Tilbury is a key part of our wider investment programme to upgrade our electricity transmission network in East Anglia to ensure we meet this future energy transmission demand.