SSEN Transmission has set up a £22bn, five-year plan to help move the UK closer to its clean energy targets whilst establishing and supporting thousands of jobs.

The subsidiary of SSE is submitting their plans to Ofgem, the energy regulator, pledging to spend at least £22bn on its business plan over the five year period beginning in April 2026 and ending in March 2031.

£16bn of which will be for “strategic investments” that already have Ofgem approval, as part of efforts to improve the transmission network of the country.

Overall spending could reach £31.7bn as SEEN Transmission says there is potential it could gain another £9.4bn in investment.

SSE claims that its plans will help the UK meet its net-zero targets, as well as its clean energy goals, which aim to have at least 95% of all electricity coming from low-carbon sources, like renewables, by 2030.

If the company counts on the additional funding and invests £31.7bn over the next five years, SSE says the plan would help support 37,000 jobs across the UK, with 17,500 in Scotland, 8,400 of which would be concentrated in the north of Scotland.

Further, the company claims that their plans would bring in £15bn to the UK economy, with £7bn of this going to Scotland, £3bn of which would go to the north of Scotland.

Rob McDonald, managing director of SSEN Transmission, said the plan “sets out ambitious, deliverable blueprint, to unlock the unprecedented levels of investment required to deliver UK and Scottish net zero and energy security targets, including the clean power by 2030 mission.”

“In what is one of the largest investment programmes of all time in Scotland, this plan will also support tens of thousands of jobs across the country, turbo-charging the economy and delivering a transformational and lasting legacy for communities, the economy and nature,” he added.

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The energy firm did stress however, that in order to achieve these goals it would require that the right “financial framework commensurate with the scale of the task” and that it be “capable  of attracting the unprecedented levels of investment needed to deliver the clean energy transition and protect future energy consumers.”

SSE’s chief executive, Alistair Phillips Davies, emphasised the need to “deliver a cleaner, more secure and affordable electricity system for current and future generations.”

“With a new national mission to deliver clean power by 2030 in order to boost energy security and protect future consumers, unlocking the right level of investment during the next price control will be key.

“We’re setting out today the extent of our ambition and commitment; it is now crucial that Ofgem backs that ambition with an investable and financeable framework, setting an appropriate cost of equity that recognises the unprecedented levels of investment required to decarbonise the economy and deliver a clean power system.”