Question to the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero:

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, what policies his Department is developing to ensure that (a) heavy-duty vehicle depots and (b) bus depots can access timely electricity grid connections.

The National Energy System Operator (NESO) is implementing fundamental reforms to the connections process that will free up capacity and accelerate connections, including for heavy-duty vehicle and bus depots. Alongside this, we encourage transport stakeholders to engage with NESO to ensure that the regional energy strategic plans that will inform future investment in grid capacity reflect their future electricity requirements.

However, we recognise that further action is needed, which is why we announced plans in the Industrial Strategy to use new legal powers to accelerate grid connection timelines for the most strategically important demand customers.