Developers and housebuilders
Utility connections for developers, run as one programme
From a handful of plots to large phased schemes. We build the load schedule, apply to the incumbent operators, invite independent offers where the work is contestable, and keep every utility lined up with your build and sales programme.
On a multi-plot site, the utilities have to line up
A housing site might need an electricity network and substation, gas mains (on plots still being built to the current rules), new water mains, foul and surface water sewers for adoption, and full fibre to every home. Each comes from a different company, under a different set of rules, with its own design, quote and adoption process.
The risk on a development isn't usually one bad quote. It's that the quotes don't match each other: different layout revisions, different dates, a substation in the wrong place, or a trench dug twice. That is where programmes slip and costs creep up.
We run the applications as one programme. We build the load schedule with your design team, apply to the incumbent operators, invite independent offers where it's worth it, compare them like for like and coordinate the dates through to plot meters and handover.
We handle, for developers
- Load schedules and supply sizing, plot by plot
- Electricity applications to DNOs, IDNOs and ICPs
- Gas mains and services where gas is still in the design
- Water mains requisitions, self-lay and NAV options
- Section 104 adoption and Section 106 sewer connections
- Openreach and other fibre network registrations
- Phasing, programme dates and plot meter coordination
- Demand applications of 5 MVA and above
Start with an accurate load schedule
The size of supply you ask for decides what the network operator designs, and what it charges you for.
For a development, that means a schedule of every plot: house type, heating, EV charging, solar panels and batteries, plus landlord and communal loads such as lifts, lighting and pumps. From that comes the maximum demand for the site and the size and position of any new substation.
Since 1 April 2023, demand connections pay for the extension assets that connect them. Wider reinforcement is paid through network charges, except where it goes over Ofgem's high cost cap of £1,720 per kVA or the assets serve only your site. An oversized request can still mean sole-use assets you didn't need. An undersized one can mean a second application later.
National guaranteed standards set how fast the DNO must quote once the application is complete: 15 working days for 1 to 4 premises, 25 for other low-voltage demand and 35 for high-voltage schemes.
What we need for a development
- Location plan and site layout with plot numbers
- Unit schedule: house types, sizes and tenures
- Heating type for each plot
- EV chargers, solar, batteries and any large motors
- Meter positions, and group or communal metering layouts
- Drainage layout with levels and outfall points
- Required dates and a phasing plan
- Land ownership and any wayleave or easement issues
- A letter of authority so we can apply for you
IDNOs, ICPs, UIPs, self-lay providers and NAVs
On most development sites you can choose who builds the on-site networks, and sometimes who owns them afterwards. The incumbent always does the non-contestable work, such as the final connection to its existing network.
| Utility | Incumbent | Independent builder | Independent owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity | The DNO for the area | ICP, accredited under NERS (run by LRQA) | IDNO, a licensed operator whose domestic use-of-system charges are capped at the host DNO's level |
| Gas | The gas distribution network | UIP, accredited under GIRS (run by LRQA) | Independent gas transporter (IGT) |
| Water | The local water company | Self-lay provider, accredited under WIRS (run by LRQA) | NAV (new appointee), the water equivalent of an IDNO |
| Sewers | The local sewerage company, adopting under Section 104 | Your groundworker, built to the sewerage company's adoption standards | The sewerage company, or a NAV where one is appointed |
| Fibre | Openreach | Other full fibre networks that serve new sites, such as Virgin Media and Gigaclear | |
An ICP can choose the point of connection and approve its own design under the Competition in Connections Code of Practice, which can shorten the programme. Not every site benefits from going independent. We tell you where it's worth asking. Read our DNO, IDNO and ICP guide.
Self-lay, NAVs and the April 2026 charging rules
A self-lay provider designs and lays water mains and services for the water company to adopt under Section 51A. It can give you more control over dates than a requisition. A NAV goes further and becomes the water (and sometimes sewerage) company for the site.
The rules changed in April 2026. Under Ofwat's charging rules for English companies, water companies must not make asset payments for adopting self-laid water mains, Section 104 sewers, communication pipes or lateral drains. Charges under Section 51A and Section 104 must cover site-specific work only, with no network reinforcement. Some older self-lay marketing still promises asset payments. Don't build them into your appraisal.
Infrastructure charges are charged per connection and published every year. They must be reduced for any previous use of the site in the last five years. Every English water company must also offer environmental incentives (discounts or payments for water efficiency and sustainable drainage), though the amounts and conditions differ between companies.
More on water connectionsConnections phased to your sales programme
Very few sites need every plot live on the same day. We set the applications up around your phasing plan, so the network is built and energised in stages, show homes and early completions come first, and you aren't paying for later phases before you need them.
Each completed plot then needs its own meters. The network operator connects the plot, and an energy supplier fits the electricity meter (and the gas meter, where there is gas). Water meters are normally fitted by the water company as part of the connection. We keep a plot-by-plot tracker of what is connected, what is metered and what is still to book, so nothing is missed at handover.
Watch the offer dates
Connection offers have a validity period, often 90 days for electricity. Some operators also charge an assessment and design fee for preparing an offer, whether or not you accept it. We time applications so offers are still open when you are ready to commit.
Getting the quotes to line up with each other
A quote is only useful if it fits with the others. These are the checks we make on every development.
- Same layout revision. Every operator quotes from the same site layout, so plot numbers, roads and meter positions match.
- Same dates and phasing. Each application carries the same programme, so no utility is quoted for the wrong phase.
- Shared trenches where they work. Utilities laid in a common trench, at the positions set out in the Street Works UK guidelines for new development sites, can save digging. We check each operator's specification allows it.
- Clear scope. We list who digs, who ducts, who reinstates and who supplies the meter boxes, so nothing falls between two quotes.
- Substation and kiosk positions. We make sure the substation, pumping station and fibre cabinets fit the layout and the planning drawings.
- Like-for-like comparison. Incumbent and independent offers compared on scope, exclusions, timings and cost, not just the headline price.
Free full fibre on sites of 20 or more homes
Openreach provides full fibre free on sites of 20 or more premises. Sites of 1 to 19 premises pay a contribution under its rate card, and any plot connected to copper instead is charged £2,500.
In England, Part R of the Building Regulations requires gigabit-ready infrastructure in new homes, and a gigabit-capable connection subject to a £2,000 per home cost cap. Network operator contributions count towards the cap.
Register the site with the network early, so ducting goes in with the roads and services rather than after.
More on fibre connectionsThe Future Homes Standard changes how you size gas and electricity
The standard was published on 24 March 2026 and comes into force in England on 24 March 2027.
A building can still be completed to the 2021 rules if the building notice, initial notice or full plans went in before 24 March 2027, and work on that building starts before 24 March 2028. That test applies building by building, not to the whole site. Higher-risk buildings follow a separate timetable, from 24 September 2027.
The standard doesn't ban gas boilers. But its targets are based on a home heated by a heat pump with solar panels, and new homes built to it won't need a gas connection for heating. On a site that straddles the change, you may have gas on early plots and none on later ones.
Read the Future Homes Standard guideGas sized to the plots that need it
Only plots on the transitional route are likely to need gas. Sizing mains for the whole site risks gas infrastructure that is never used.
More electricity per home
Heat pumps add load. The government's own impact assessment assumes about 1.5 kVA more per heat-pump home.
EV charging and solar
Charge points, panels and batteries all go into the load schedule, so the substation is sized once.
Sites in Wales
Wales has its own Part L, in force from 4 March 2027 with different transition rules. We check the position plot by plot.
Demand of 5 MVA and above: the new application rules
From 1 June 2026, every DNO asks for minimum information with any demand application of 5 MVA or more. Large housing and mixed-use schemes can fall into this. Applications without it aren't accepted into the queue, and generic dates such as "ASAP" or "TBC" won't do.
This is part of Ofgem's wider demand connections reform, which is mainly aimed at very large users such as data centres. Further reforms were still being decided when we wrote this page. Ordinary housing sites under 5 MVA aren't directly affected.
What a 5 MVA+ application needs
- A letter of authority
- Heads of terms, where the applicant doesn't own the land
- A site plan
- A project timeline with real milestone dates
- A single line diagram, where your equipment could disturb the network
We pull these together with your design team before the application goes in.
Developer connection questions
Should I use the DNO or an IDNO for my development?
It depends on the site. An IDNO owns and runs the network on your site after it is built, and its domestic use-of-system charges are capped at the host DNO's level. We compare the offers on scope, timing and cost and tell you which suits the scheme.
Do water companies still make asset payments for self-lay?
Not in England under Ofwat's rules from April 2026. Water companies must not make asset payments for adopting self-laid mains, Section 104 sewers, communication pipes or lateral drains. Treat any offer that promises them with caution.
Will Openreach provide fibre free to my site?
Openreach provides full fibre free on sites of 20 or more premises. Smaller sites pay a contribution under its rate card, and plots connected to copper instead are charged £2,500 each.
Do new homes on my site still need gas?
Plots built to the Future Homes Standard won't need a gas connection for heating. In England, a building can stay on the 2021 rules if it was notified before 24 March 2027 and work on it starts before 24 March 2028, so some sites will have gas on early plots only.
Do I pay for electricity network reinforcement on a housing site?
Usually not since 1 April 2023. You pay for the extension assets, and reinforcement is recovered through network charges, unless it goes over Ofgem's high cost cap of £1,720 per kVA or the assets serve only your site.
Can the connections be phased?
Yes. We set up the applications around your phasing plan, so each part of the network is built and connected when that phase needs it.
What changes for sites of 5 MVA and above?
Since 1 June 2026 every DNO asks for minimum information with these applications, including a letter of authority, a site plan, a milestone timeline and, where you don't own the land, heads of terms.
Do you do the installation work?
No. The work is done by the network operators, water companies and accredited independent providers. We manage the applications and compare their offers, so our advice isn't tied to selling you our own installation.
Planning a development?
Send us the layout and unit schedule. We'll set out the application route for each utility, where independent offers are worth getting, and a clear quote for managing it all.