National Grid expects growth above guidance after a strong first half

National Grid PLC said it expects performance to be slightly above its growth guidance following a strong first-half performance in National Grid Ventures & Other.

The London-based electricity and gas utility said in a pre-close update ahead of its half-year results that it now expects underlying earnings per share growth to be slightly above its guidance range of 13% to 15%.

It noted, however, that its regulated businesses continue to perform in line with expectations.

In UK Electricity Transmission and UK Electricity Distribution, National Grid expects operating profit to be broadly evenly split across the year. In its US regulated businesses, operating profit is expected to be weighted towards the second half, in line with the usual seasonality. In New England, it expects a return to a more typical seasonal profile following the one-off impact of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission return on equity judgement in the second half of financial 2026.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission return on equity judgement relates to a US regulatory decision on the return on equity that utilities can earn on regulated transmission assets. It resulted in a one-off £157 million adjustment for National Grid in financial 2026.

National Grid Ventures & Other is expected to deliver around £130 million of additional first-half performance, reflecting significant one-off fair value gains following two successful capital market transactions within the group's NG Partners investment portfolio, as well as stronger performance from its interconnectors business.

National Grid said half-year net debt is expected to be broadly in line with full-year guidance, following the Joulent investment.

Shares in National Grid were up 0.7% at 1,155.00 pence per share on Monday morning in London.

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