Five National Grid-led projects developing electricity transmission and distribution network innovations will continue after securing over £1m from the next stage of Ofgem’s Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF) programme.
With electricity demand rising from data centres and wider electrification, the projects aim to assist the network adapt more quickly and efficiently, while maintaining reliability and keeping costs down for consumers, National Grid said.
The projects span both the Discovery and Alpha phases of the SIF programme, which supports the development and testing of new technologies and approaches to help transform Great Britain’s energy networks.
National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET) has been awarded funding for two Discovery phase projects, which focus on early-stage feasibility and evidence development. This includes £124,391 for a project exploring how large electricity users – including data centres – could connect to the grid faster through flexible demand arrangements, and £138,674 for a second project investigating new probabilistic approaches to network planning, helping to improve how network capacity is allocated and support more efficient connections.
Two further projects – Project FoSMo and Project AMPERES – have secured funding for the Alpha phase, which supports real-world testing and development of innovative solutions. Project FoSMo has been awarded £355,985 to develop and test shared artificial intelligence models for asset monitoring, while Project AMPERES has been awarded £456,027 to trial automated methods for large-scale marine habitat restoration to support offshore grid expansion.
National Grid Electricity Distribution has also secured £147,000 in SIF funding for its Discovery phase ‘Matchmaker’ project, which will explore the development of a digital tool to connect renewable developers with local community energy groups.
These projects form part of National Grid’s wider innovation programme, focused on addressing the challenges of a rapidly evolving energy system — including increasing demand from sectors such as data centres, integrating renewable generation, and delivering new infrastructure at pace.
Projects include:
National Grid Electricity Transmission
- Supporting data centre growth and faster grid connections: Project FLARE (Flexibility for Large Assets to Rapidly Energise)
- Improving planning for a more complex, high-demand system: Project PROMUPS (Probabilistic Methods for Uncertainty in Power Systems)
- Using AI to improve asset monitoring and reliability: Project FoSMo (Foundation Source Model)
- Scaling environmental solutions alongside offshore expansion: Project AMPERES (Automating Marine Plant Ecosystem Restoration for Energy Supply)
National Grid Electricity Distribution:
- Connecting renewable developers with local community energy groups
NGED programme lead Jenny Woodruff said:
“By bringing developers and community energy groups together through a simple digital tool, we can help schemes move forward quicker and at lower cost.
“Community groups bring local insight and trust, while developers bring technical expertise – and when those come together, it can lead to more successful projects and greater community ownership.”
Neil McClymont, Head of Innovation at National Grid Electricity Transmission, said:
“Innovation is essential if we are to keep pace with the changing demands on the electricity network.
“From supporting faster connections for large users like data centres, to improving how we plan and operate the system, these projects will help us build a smarter, more flexible and resilient network for the future.”
