Following a network fault in the Abbeydale Rd area of Park Royal in early April, in an attempt to restore and maintain supplies as quickly as possible, UK Power Networks (UKPN) engineers reconfigured the network and installed additional fuses. Regrettably this caused a loading issue and resulted in further power cuts before UKPN could carry out further repairs. UKPN extend their sincere apologies to the businesses impacted by this disruption.
UKPN has now carried out an extensive review of the power cuts and the actions taken. Learning points and areas for improvement have been identified and these will be addressed internally by UKPN to improve the service provided in future.
A productive meeting was held between UKPN, Park Royal Business Group (PRBG)/ West London Business, Old Oak & Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) and Brent Council after the incident. We were encouraged by the UKPN review process and local investment plans.
The meeting clarified that the two transformers supplying the Western edge of Park Royal have 2000KVA of capacity available, with only 900KVA of capacity used – so there is no capacity problem in this part of Park Royal – however it is recognised that network resilience can be improved.
To limit the possibility of a situation such as the recent power failure occurring again in the Abbeydale Rd area the network will be extended, increasing flexibility and resilience, and benefiting all the businesses in the area.
The works during June 2018 involved excavations in the highway and temporary suspension of a small number of parking bays. In order to minimise disruption UKPN wrote to all businesses in the area in advance detailing the timescales and scope of works.
Power supply – Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who are the Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) for Park Royal?
UK Power Networks is the DNO for the vast majority of Park Royal. SSE Power Distribution is the DNO for a few areas in the south of Park Royal.
Enter your postcode on this page to help identify your DNO: http://www.energynetworks.org/info/faqs/who-is-my-network-operator.html
2. How do I find out the existing electricity ‘service capacity’ for the unit my business occupies?
If UKPN is your DNO email the Connections Agreement team at connection.agreements@ukpowernetworks.co.uk or call 0808 101 4131
3. My business does not yet occupy a unit on Park Royal, but we are considering signing a lease. How do I get existing electricity service capacity information?
UKPN release the capacity information to someone who is the Owner/Occupier of a premises. If you are not yet in occupation you could request a Letter of Authority from Owner/Occupier to supply to UKPN so they can release this information to you.
4. On the Western edge of Park Royal we now have confirmation that there is a significant amount of extra capacity (see above). My business is considering moving into another part of Park Royal and is planning for some growth over the next few years. How do we find out what spare capacity is available (over and above the current permitted supply to the site)? This will help inform a business decision as to whether UKPN is likely to be able to raise the permitted supply amount (without an additional charge) or whether we need to budget for UKPN works to increase network capacity.
All requests for an increase in capacity require an application to be submitted to UK Power Networks. This will either result in UKPN being able to offer the capacity without the need for any works or provide a quotation to construct the capacity. Where a ‘no works’ offer is made, the customer will need to sign the offer within 3 months to secure the capacity.
Where there is a charge for works that result in extra capacity being installed that is subsequently utilised by another business in the area within 10 years, a proportion of the costs will be refunded to the business funding the original works by UKPN.
Looking forward
The context for Park Royal – the UK’s largest industrial estate – is that it is operating at almost 100% occupancy, with c.2000 businesses and 40,000 plus employees. The local plan envisages intensification of the industrial land use and a further 10,000 employment opportunities emerging in the years ahead. This demands careful planning of electricity infrastructure.
Short term steps to support this include:
- The Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation (OPDC) are commissioning a study (Summer 2018) on current Park Royal Power Supply capacity and how to meet future needs; and
- From early 2019 UKPN will be piloting new monitoring technology in some sub-stations on the lower power network which will give them demand visibility beyond the sub-stations (at a very localised level) for the first time – PRBG will continue to encourage UKPN to pilot this in as many sub-stations in Park Royal as possible to help build a rich picture of local demand and supply.
PRBG look forward to welcoming a speaker from UKPN to the Park Royal Infrastructure Summit 2018 on Thurs 13 September 2018 at Fit Out UK to provide further insight on the local network and how they are working with the OPDC to ensure the network will cope with growth.
