Western Power Distribution was the
trading identity of four
electricity distribution companies in the United Kingdom: WPD South West (operating in
South West England
South West England, or the South West of England, is one of nine official regions of England. It consists of the counties of Bristol, Cornwall (including the Isles of Scilly), Dorset, Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cities and ...
), WPD South Wales (in
South Wales
South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...
) and WPD Midlands (two companies, in the
East Midlands
The East Midlands is one of nine official regions of England at the first level of ITL for statistical purposes. It comprises the eastern half of the area traditionally known as the Midlands. It consists of Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Li ...
and
West Midlands
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
). Each company was the
distribution network operator for its respective region. Western Power Distribution, which had headquarters in
Bristol, served approximately 7.7 million customers in its combined distribution areas. In 2022 the company was absorbed into its new parent company,
National Grid.
History
Formation
In 1998, WPD South West was formed from the demerger of the electricity distribution arm of
SWEB
SWEB Energy, formerly South Western Electricity Board (SWEB) was a British state-owned regional electricity company operating in South West England which was privatised by the Thatcher government. Although sold many times, the 'SWEB' brand na ...
.
In September 2000, the American energy company
PPL Corporation
PPL Corporation is an energy company headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania in the Lehigh Valley region of eastern Pennsylvania. The company is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange.
History
Pennsylvania Power & Light was founded in 1 ...
purchased
Hyder Hyder can refer to:
Places
*Hyder, Alaska, U.S.
**Hyder Seaplane Base
*Hyder, Arizona, U.S.
** Hyder Valley
* Hyder Creek, is a river in New York, U.S.
Other uses
* Hyder (defunct company), a former Welsh utility company
** Hyder Consulting, a su ...
for £565m and sold
Welsh Water and other interests, leaving the electricity distribution arm
Infralec which was renamed WPD South Wales.
In April 2011, E.on's
Central Networks
Western Power Distribution was the trade name, trading identity of four electricity distribution companies in the United Kingdom: WPD South West (operating in South West England), WPD South Wales (in South Wales) and WPD Midlands (two companie ...
(the distribution network operator for the East and West Midlands) was purchased by PPL for £3.5 billion and rebranded as Western Power Distribution.
2022 redress payment
In May 2022, WPD made a £14.9million voluntary redress payment after an investigation by industry regulator
Ofgem found shortfalls in the company's implementation of its obligations to vulnerable customers.
Acquisition by National Grid
Western Power Distribution was a subsidiary of PPL for many years. In August 2020, PPL announced an intention to sell WPD. In March 2021, PPL announced a swap with National Grid in which it divested WPD and acquired Narragansett Electric of Rhode Island. The acquisition was completed in June 2021, and approved by the
Competition and Markets Authority in September of that year. In September 2022, the company was renamed to National Grid Electricity Distribution.
References
External links
*
Electric power companies of England
Electric power in Wales
Electric power distribution network operators in the United Kingdom
Companies based in Cardiff
Companies based in Bristol
2021 mergers and acquisitions
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