United Infrastructure has joined energy infrastructure trade body BEAMA as the electricity networks sector sets out a decade-long expansion programme that could drive around £181bn of investment through to 2035.
The Warrington-headquartered infrastructure contractor confirmed its full membership on 22 October, two days after BEAMA and the Energy Networks Association published the Electricity Networks Sector Growth Plan. The roadmap is intended to give network operators, manufacturers, contractors and other suppliers greater visibility of the transmission and distribution work expected over the next decade.
United Infrastructure already designs, builds and maintains transmission, distribution and grid-connection infrastructure, including substations, underground cables and electrical networks up to 400kV. Its decision to join BEAMA therefore puts a tier-one delivery contractor alongside the equipment manufacturers and technology suppliers that will have to expand capacity if the network programme is delivered.
United Infrastructure already designs, builds and maintains transmission, distribution and grid-connection infrastructure, including substations, underground cables and electrical networks up to 400kV. Its membership of BEAMA brings the perspective of a tier-one delivery contractor into discussions alongside the manufacturers, technology suppliers and network stakeholders that will need to expand capacity to support the sector's investment programme.
Griff Thomas, Executive Director of Energy Transition and External Affairs at United Infrastructure, with Yselkla Farmer, CEO of BEAMA, following United Infrastructure's move to join the trade association. Photo: United Infrastructure.
£181bn Pipeline Extends Beyond Electrical Equipment
The scale of the programme makes electricity networks increasingly relevant to the wider construction market. The Sector Growth Plan identifies around £181bn of investment in Great Britain's electricity networks through to 2035, while BEAMA's accompanying publication describes network operators and their supply chains as potentially investing up to £200bn over the next ten years. The difference reflects the way the wider investment opportunity is presented rather than an awarded construction programme.
BEAMA estimates that the programme could support a total network-sector workforce of 210,000 by 2035, including around 48,000 additional jobs, while generating £58bn in gross value added. It also estimates that 72p of every £1 invested could flow into regional economies and local supply chains.
For construction, the workload extends well beyond pylons and electrical plant. Transmission and distribution expansion requires substations, reinforced concrete foundations, structural steel, access roads, drainage, cable routes, earthworks, underground infrastructure, temporary works, specialist electrical installation, testing and commissioning.
LCM's recent analysis of UK construction investment entering 2027 identified electricity networks as one of the strongest long-duration markets, with regulated investment creating a more visible pipeline than many conventional building sectors.
Long-Term Procurement Visibility Is a Central Part of the Plan
One of the plan's most construction-relevant proposals is greater visibility of future demand. Network operators intend to provide longer-term projections of equipment and delivery requirements so manufacturers and contractors can make investment decisions before capacity becomes a programme constraint.
BEAMA and ENA are also pushing for longer-term procurement and closer collaboration between network operators and the supply chain. For manufacturers, that affects decisions around transformers, switchgear, cables and other electrical equipment. For contractors, the same visibility can influence recruitment, training, specialist plant and regional delivery capacity.
The issue is already becoming critical in sectors outside the regulated network market. LCM's analysis of grid power as the critical path for UK data-cententre construction found that electrical connections, substations and long-lead equipment are increasingly capable of determining whether otherwise viable developments can move into physical construction.
Network reinforcement therefore has a second construction effect: additional capacity can unlock data centres, industrial facilities, electrified transport, housing and renewable-generation projects that depend on connections before they can operate.
United Infrastructure Expands Its Position in Power Delivery
United Infrastructure's power business is already active across both transmission and distribution. The company holds NERS accreditation and works with network owners including National Grid, SSE, SP Energy Networks, Electricity North West, Northern Powergrid and UK Power Networks.
Earlier this year it secured places on two SP Energy Networks frameworks covering substation civils and electrical works across the RIIO-ED2 period and into RIIO-ED3. The group has also reported a £236m-plus programme of grid-upgrade work in the Scottish Highlands, while its wider secured order book stood at £4.6bn at 31 March 2026.
Membership of BEAMA gives the contractor access to discussions covering network regulation, technical standards, industrial policy, manufacturing capacity and skills. United Infrastructure said it intends to contribute the perspective of companies responsible for physical delivery rather than limiting those discussions to network operators and equipment manufacturers.
Neil Armstrong, chairman and chief executive of United Infrastructure, said the plan provides the industry with a clearer view of "the scale of work required, the investment that will take, and the people it will take to deliver it".
The company is expanding apprenticeships and its own training academy and has introduced routes into the industry for armed forces service leavers. Skills are a central part of the wider Sector Growth Plan, particularly in engineering, electrical installation and commissioning roles where shortages could restrict the speed at which new infrastructure enters service.
Transmission infrastructure construction forms part of the wider programme of grid reinforcement needed as investment in Britain's electricity networks accelerates towards 2035. Photo: United Infrastructure.
From Investment Pipeline to Construction Capacity
The £181bn figure is an investment requirement rather than an awarded construction value, and the work will move through different regulatory settlements, clients, frameworks and project stages over the period to 2035. The immediate commercial significance is the duration and visibility of the pipeline rather than a single procurement event.
BEAMA and ENA have established a Growth Partnership to take the Sector Growth Plan into implementation, with dedicated workstreams covering supply chains and skills. Network operators are also expected to provide rolling long-term demand information so suppliers can see requirements earlier and plan capacity accordingly.
For United Infrastructure, joining BEAMA places its transmission and distribution delivery teams within that process while the contractor continues to expand its existing grid workload. The Growth Partnership is now the mechanism through which the plan's supply-chain and workforce actions are due to be developed.
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