National Grid has awarded £12 billion worth of agreements under its High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) civil works supply chain framework, marking the final stage of its £59 billion supply chain framework awards.

The move underlines National Grid's commitment to delivering the infrastructure needed for the Great Grid Upgrade and supporting the UK's energy transition.

Six suppliers have secured positions on Lot 1 of the HVDC Converter Civil Works Framework, worth approximately £9.07 billion. They include Balfour Beatty, BAM Nuttall, Galliford Try, Laing O'Rourke, Skanska and Taylor Woodrow.

Meanwhile, three suppliers — Balfour Beatty, Murphy and VolkerFitzpatrick — have been awarded places on Lot 2, the HVDC Onshore Cable Civils Framework, worth an estimated £3.7 billion.

Contracts will run for five years with the option to extend for a further three, covering both confirmed and anticipated projects. These include Eastern Green Link 4, being developed in partnership with SP Energy Networks, and LionLink, a joint venture with TenneT.

The first tender under the new framework will be launched shortly, focusing on shared southern works required for Eastern Green Link 3 and 4.

National Grid said the frameworks are designed to strengthen and broaden the supply chain, with new entrants encouraged to boost capacity. One example is Sumitomo, which is building HVDC cable manufacturing facilities in the UK for the first time in over two decades.

Zac Richardson, Chief Engineer and Offshore Delivery Director of Strategic Infrastructure at National Grid, said: "This marks a major step forward in delivering the UK’s future energy network. This investment not only underpins the transition to a more secure, independent and low-carbon energy future, but will also support tens of thousands of UK jobs, boost regional supply chains and strengthen our construction and engineering sectors. By building strategic, long-term partnerships with leading UK-based contractors, we're ensuring the UK is ready to meet the growing demand for electricity with a resilient and modern network."

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Gareth Burden, Construction Director of National Grid’s LionLink project, added: "Awarding these HVDC agreements is essential to strengthen our supply chain for our future projects. Today's announcement ensures we are well placed to progress LionLink and deliver the vital energy infrastructure the nation needs to be more energy secure, whilst lowering household energy bills."

Suppliers also welcomed the awards.

Stephen Tarr, Divisional CEO and Group Sector Lead – UK Energy at Balfour Beatty, said: "Our unique end-to-end capabilities and our extensive civil engineering knowledge makes us ideally positioned to secure the power supply to millions of homes and businesses across England and Wales.

"We look forward to working closely and collaboratively with National Grid and our partners on the High Voltage Direct Current supply chain framework, as we build on our long-standing relationship and our history of successful delivery."

John Wilkinson, Chief Operating Officer, BAM UK & Ireland, said: "We're thrilled to continue our close collaboration with National Grid, taking another significant step towards protecting the UK’s future energy supply and accelerating the transition to cleaner, greener power through the delivery of critical infrastructure. This contract award builds on our ongoing work to improve energy connectivity right across the UK and Ireland, helping to power millions of homes with green electricity and reinforcing BAM's commitment to building a sustainable tomorrow."

Bill Hocking, Chief Executive of Galliford Try, commented: "Continuing to grow our core Infrastructure business is a key part of our Sustainable Growth Strategy, and this appointment will see us deliver further civil engineering and construction solutions for the energy sector. We look forward to working with National Grid to play our part in modernising and decarbonising the energy system and building the infrastructure that will enable our country’s current and future energy needs."

John O'Connor, Clients & Markets Director, Laing O'Rourke, said: "We're thrilled to be part of the converter civils framework and are looking forward to building on our already strong relationship with National Grid to deliver vital infrastructure work.

We will bring proven expertise from adjacent sectors into the delivery of the HVDC valve halls, incorporating modern methods of construction and our mechanical and engineering solutions that have been tried and tested in other sectors.

"This work is vital to ensure the UK’s grid can handle future demands as we look to switch from fossil fuels to clean energy, and we are proud to be on this journey with National Grid to help the nation to become more sustainable."

Andrew English, Executive Vice President, Skanska UK, said: "Energy security is a top priority for the UK. We’re looking forward to working collaboratively with National Grid in delivering critical HVDC infrastructure that will support the country's future energy needs. We’ll draw on our UK and global expertise, providing specialist civils construction knowledge, capacity and capability."