Western Power Distribution is a

trade name A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...

formerly used by four

electricity distribution Electric power distribution is the final stage in the delivery of electricity. Electricity is carried from the transmission system to individual consumers. Distribution substations connect to the transmission system and lower the transmission ...

companies in the United Kingdom: WPD South West (operating in

South West England South West England, or the South West of England, is one of the nine official regions of England, regions of England in the United Kingdom. Additionally, it is one of four regions that altogether make up Southern England. South West England con ...

), WPD South Wales (in

South Wales South Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the Historic counties of Wales, historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire ( ...

) and WPD Midlands (two companies, in the

East Midlands The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire (except for North Lincolnshire and North East ...

and West Midlands). Each company was the

distribution network operator A distribution network operator (DNO), also known as a distribution system operator (DSO), is the operator of the electric power distribution system which delivers electricity to most end users. Each country may have many local distribution netwo ...

for its respective region. Western Power Distribution, which had headquarters in

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, served approximately 7.7 million customers in its combined distribution areas. In 2022 the company was absorbed into its new parent company, National Grid.

History

Formation

In 1998, WPD South West was formed from the demerger of the electricity distribution arm of SWEB. In September 2000, the American energy company PPL Corporation purchased Hyder for £565m and sold

Welsh Water Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, of or about Wales * Welsh language, spoken in Wales * Welsh people, an ethnic group native to Wales Places * Welsh, Arkansas, U.S. * Welsh, Louisiana, U.S. * Welsh, Ohio, U.S. * Welsh Basin, during t ...

and other interests, leaving the electricity distribution arm Infralec which was renamed WPD South Wales. In April 2011, PPL purchased Central Networks (the distribution network operator for the East and West Midlands) from E.ON for £3.5 billion and rebranded it as WPD Midlands.

2022 redress payment

In May 2022, WPD made a £14.9million voluntary redress payment after an investigation by industry regulator

Ofgem The Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) is the government regulator for the electricity and downstream natural gas markets in Great Britain. It was formed by the merger of the Office of Electricity Regulation (OFFER) and Office of G ...

found shortfalls in the company's implementation of its obligations to vulnerable customers.

Acquisition by National Grid

Western Power Distribution was a subsidiary of PPL for many years. In August 2020, PPL announced an intention to sell WPD. In March 2021, PPL announced a swap with National Grid in which it divested WPD and acquired Narragansett Electric of Rhode Island. The acquisition was completed in June 2021, and approved by the

Competition and Markets Authority The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is the principal competition regulator in the United Kingdom. It is a non-ministerial government department in the United Kingdom, responsible for promoting competitive markets and tackling unfair beh ...

in September of that year. In September 2022, the company was renamed to National Grid Electricity Distribution.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Electric power companies of England Electric power in Wales Electric power distribution network operators in the United Kingdom Companies based in Cardiff Companies based in Bristol 2021 mergers and acquisitions