The UK Government is to introduce reforms aimed at tackling the marked rise in speculative grid connection applications, with plans to ensure that strategically important projects, such as AI data centres and new industrial sites, are given priority.

Official figures show that the queue for demand connections to the transmission network has been swamped with applications, growing by 460% over the first half of 2025, with projects now facing waits of up to fifteen years to connect to the grid. 

To address this, the government is consulting on measures to address the oversubscribed queue and accelerate viable projects that will benefit the UK economy. This includes data centres and the government’s designated AI Growth Zones, as well as EV charging hubs and electrified industrial sites in industrial heartlands.

Planned AI Growth Zones will receive priority access to the available capacity on the grid, with data centres in some Growth Zone locations benefiting from discounts on their electricity bills. Developers could also be supported to connect their own high voltage lines and substations to power their data centres, rather than waiting for network operators to do it, further driving down costs.

As well as prioritising connections for key projects, the government said the reforms will create a fairer, more efficient system by strengthening the conditions for joining and remaining in the grid queue, and streamlining the process for data centre connections, while balancing the needs of the energy system.

The energy regulator, Ofgem, has already opened a consultation on its preferred conditions, which could include increasing the financial requirements for developers in the queue, such as deposits or fees, which would be payable if key milestones are not met.

Recommended reading

• Experts Call for Urgent Action to Help UK Meet Net Zero Targets
• Will AI Energy Demand Undermind Climate Gains?
• Comment | Building Adaptive Energy Systems with AI

“Industries that can bring real economic benefits are ready and waiting to be powered up, but the queue for grid connections has grown exponentially due to speculative applications,” said the energy minister, Michael Shanks.

“We will prioritise the projects, including AI datacentres and industrial sites, that are ready and needed to deliver growth and jobs for communities across Britain.”

The National Energy System Operator has already reported cutting the grid queue by more than half by prioritising projects that are ready and needed to help deliver clean power by 2030, unlocking 381.5GW of capacity.

“The surge in demand applications shows the strength of investment interest across Great Britain, but the demand connections pipeline must reflect projects that are credible, ready and committed to progressing,” said Kayte O’Neill, NESO Chief Operating Officer.