- National Grid plc
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National Grid plc 
Type Public limited company
(LSE: NG., NYSE: NGG)Industry Utilities Founded 1990 Headquarters London, United Kingdom Key people Sir John Parker (Chairman)
Steve Holliday (Chief Executive)Products Electricity and Gas Transmission and Gas Distribution Revenue £13,988 million (2009/10)[1] Operating income £3,293 million (2009/10)[1] Net income £1,389 million (2009/10)[1] Employees 28,106 (31 March 2010)[1] Website www.nationalgrid.com 
A National Grid van working in central England
National Grid plc (LSE: NG., NYSE: NGG) is a multinational electricity and gas utility company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Its principal activities are in the United Kingdom and northeastern United States and it is one of the largest investor-owned energy companies in the world.[1]
National Grid is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It has a secondary listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
Contents
History
Former CEGB
In 1990, the transmission activities of the Central Electricity Generating Board were transferred to the National Grid Company plc, which was owned by the 12 Regional Electricity Companies (RECs) through a holding company, National Grid Group plc. In 1995, shares in this holding company were listed on the stock exchange.[2] Within a year, most of the RECs had disposed of their interests.
Acquisitions
In 2000, National Grid Group acquired New England Electric System[3] and Eastern Utilities Associates.[4]
In January 2002, National Grid Group acquired Niagara Mohawk Holdings, Inc, a New York State utility.[5]
Merger with Transco
In October of the same year, National Grid Group merged with Lattice Group plc, owner of Transco – the UK gas distribution business (Lattice demerged from BG Group in 2000).[6] National Grid Group changed its name to National Grid Transco plc.
In 2004, National Grid Transco agreed to sell four of its regional gas distribution networks. The total cash consideration was £5.8 billion. NGT kept ownership of other four distribution networks, which comprise almost half of Great Britain's gas distribution network.[7]
In 2005, National Grid Transco was renamed National Grid plc.[8] On 26 July 2005 National Grid Company was renamed National Grid Electricity Transmission plc and on 10 October 2005 Transco was renamed National Grid Gas plc.
Further acquisitions
In February 2006, National Grid announced that it had agreed to buy KeySpan Corporation,[9] a gas distributor and electricity producer in the United States, for $7.3bn (£4.1bn) in cash. Around the same time, National Grid also announced the acquisition of the Southern Union Company subsidiary, New England Gas Company in Rhode Island.[10] The acquisitions of the two natural gas delivery companies materially doubled the size of National Grid's American subsidiary, creating the second largest utility in the United States with over 8 million customers.
The acquisition of KeySpan was completed on 24 August 2007 following government and regulatory approval and endorsement by the shareholders of the two companies.[11]
Operations
UK
- National Grid Electricity Transmission plc (formerly National Grid Company)
Owns and operates the National Grid high-voltage electricity transmission network in England and Wales. Since 1 April 2005 it also operates the electricity transmission network in Scotland (although this is still owned by Scottish Power and Scottish & Southern Energy). - National Grid plc part owns and operates a 2000 Megawatt HVDC link to France (HVDC Cross-Channel) with RTE.
- National Grid plc part owns and operates a 1000 Megawatt HVDC link to the Netherlands (BritNed) with TenneT.
- National Grid Gas plc (formerly Transco)
Owns and operates the gas transmission network (from terminals to distributors), known as the National Transmission System (NTS), and four distribution networks (from national network to customers): North West of England, East of England (which is split into 2 areas – East Anglia & East Midlands), West Midlands and London; the distribution networks were former regional divisions of British Gas.
USA
- National Grid USA
The utility operates over 9,000 miles (14,000 km) of electricity transmission and delivers electricity and natural gas to areas of the Northeast states of Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont, serving over 3.3 million customers with electrical power and 3.4 million customers with natural gas.[12] National Grid USA is currently headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts a 300,000-square-foot (28,000 m2) LEED certified "green" facility.[12] The US subsidiary carries out its business through a number of subsidiary companies (all doing business as "National Grid"). The main ones are:- New England Power Company;
- Massachusetts Electric Company (in Massachusetts);
- Nantucket Electric (in Massachusetts);
- The Narragansett Electric Company (in Rhode Island);
- Granite State Electric Company (in New Hampshire);
- Niagara Mohawk Power Corporation (in New York State);
- KeySpan Corporation (on Long Island, NY, and in parts of New York City);
- Boston Gas Company (in Massachusetts);
- Colonial Gas Company (in Massachusetts); and
- EnergyNorth Natural Gas, Inc (in New Hampshire).
See also
- National Grid (UK)
- European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E)
- Energy policy of the United Kingdom
- Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
- Scotia Gas Networks
References
- ^ a b c d e "Annual Report and Accounts 2009/10". National Grid. http://www.nationalgrid.com/NR/rdonlyres/1AF87FAD-4074-422D-AE93-A45246F80166/41359/9084_NG_AR09_Complete_Final.pdf. Retrieved 18 August 2010.
- ^ National Grid avoids £2m tax[dead link]
- ^ UK's National Grid Group buys New England Electric[dead link]
- ^ "Another US buy for National Grid". BBC News. 26 January 1999. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/the_company_file/263140.stm. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ "National Grid acquires Niagara Mohawk". Findarticles.com. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2000_Sept_5/ai_64992963. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ Barker, Sophie (23 April 2002). "Grid and Lattice form utility supergroup". The Daily Telegraph. UK. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2002/04/23/cngrid23.xml. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ by Platt, Gordon. "National Grid sells four gas networks". Findarticles.com. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3715/is_200410/ai_n9417449. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ A name change for National Grid[dead link]
- ^ "National Grid – Keyspan Merger Provides New Savings And Expanded Resources To New Hampshire Customers". Nationalgridus.com. 27 February 2006. http://www.nationalgridus.com/aboutus/a3-1_news2.asp?document=1771. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ "Electric Utility buying Rhode Island Gas Company". Projo.com. 17 February 2006. http://www.projo.com/business/content/projo_20060217_grid17.1d64dbea.html. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ "National Grid buy US gas company". BBC News. 27 February 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4754350.stm. Retrieved 18 April 2011.
- ^ a b Turner, Greg (4 December 2007). "National Grid to settle in Waltham". The Daily News Tribune (Waltham, Massachusetts: GateHouse Media, Inc.). http://www.dailynewstribune.com/news/x796646451. Retrieved 13 August 2008.
External links
Video clips
Categories:- Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange
- Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
- Electric power transmission system operators
- National Grid (UK)
- Companies established in 1990
- Companies based in Massachusetts
- Power companies of the United Kingdom
- Power companies of the United States
- Utilities of the United Kingdom
- Electric power distribution
- Natural gas companies of the United States
- Former nationalised industries of the United Kingdom
- Companies based in London
- Companies based in Syracuse, New York
- 1990 establishments in the United Kingdom
- National Grid Electricity Transmission plc (formerly National Grid Company)
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