Where We Work
Air Utilities delivers electricity, gas and water connections across the whole of England, from our base in Stockport. We are a NERS, GIRS and WIRS accredited Independent Connection Provider, which means we can build and deliver all three utilities under one contract wherever your site is. Below you will find your region, the network operators who actually serve it, and the local constraints worth knowing before you apply for anything.
Why Your Region Matters More Than You Think
The UK utilities market is organised by network operator, not by county or postcode. Fourteen electricity distribution licence areas, eight gas networks, and a long list of water companies, and none of those three maps line up with each other or with the regional map of England.
You do not get to choose your network operator. It is determined entirely by where your site is. What you do get to choose is who builds the contestable works and who adopts the completed network, which is where cost and programme are actually decided.
The practical consequence is that the first question on any connection is not what it costs. It is who actually serves this address, because applying to the wrong operator does not fail quickly. It sits in a queue first.
England at a Glance
| Region | Electricity | Gas | Water |
|---|---|---|---|
| North West | SP Electricity North West (SP Energy Networks in Merseyside) | Cadent | United Utilities |
| North East | Northern Powergrid | Northern Gas Networks | Northumbrian Water (Hartlepool Water in part) |
| Yorkshire | Northern Powergrid | Northern Gas Networks (Cadent in South Yorkshire) | Yorkshire Water |
| West Midlands | National Grid ED | Cadent | Severn Trent (South Staffs in part) |
| East Midlands | National Grid ED | Cadent | Severn Trent in the west, Anglian in the east |
| East of England | UK Power Networks | Cadent | Anglian Water, Essex and Suffolk, Cambridge Water |
| London | UK Power Networks (SSEN in West London) | Cadent in the north, SGN in the south | Thames Water, SES Water, Affinity |
| South East | UK Power Networks and SSEN | SGN | Six companies, several supply only |
| South West | National Grid ED | Wales and West Utilities | South West Water, Wessex Water, Bristol Water |
The Boundaries That Catch People Out
Five regional details that regularly cost developers weeks, all of them avoidable with a five minute check.
- West London is SSEN, not UK Power Networks. Hillingdon, Ealing and Hounslow sit outside the UKPN area, and they are also where capacity constraints have been most severe.
- South Yorkshire gas is Cadent, not Northern Gas Networks. A historical boundary, not a recent change. Sheffield, Rotherham, Barnsley and Doncaster are affected.
- Southern Water supplies drinking water to only about half the area it handles wastewater for. Across much of Kent and Sussex, one site means two water companies.
- In Bristol, water supply and wastewater are different companies. Bristol Water supplies, Wessex Water takes it away.
- A small area around Hartlepool is outside Northumbrian Water's supply licence. Hartlepool Water covers it.
If you are not certain which operators serve your address, tell us where the site is and we will confirm it before anything gets submitted.
Regional Constraints Worth Knowing Early
Some regions carry constraints that genuinely shape what is deliverable, and they belong at feasibility rather than in delivery.
Water scarcity in the east and south east. The entire Anglian Water region is classified as an area of serious water stress, and the South East carries the same designation from the Environment Agency. In Cambridgeshire, water constraints have already delayed thousands of homes and significant commercial floorspace.
Electricity capacity in West London. Data centre demand along the M4 corridor absorbed remaining capacity in the SSEN West London area, delaying developments from 2022 onwards. A ramped connection mechanism has since unblocked thousands of homes, but the constraint has not fully cleared.
Distance in the South West and rural Lincolnshire. In sparsely populated areas the nearest viable point of connection can be a long way from the site boundary, and that distance is the dominant cost driver.
Industrial load on Teesside. The scale of energy transition development here pushes connections into HV territory and substation work more often than elsewhere.
The Same Service Everywhere
Wherever your site is, the offer is identical:
- Electricity connections, LV and HV, including substations, under NERS
- Gas connections, new mains, service pipes and meters, under GIRS
- Water connections and self lay, under WIRS
- Multi utility packages, all three utilities in one contract and one trench
- EV charging infrastructure, with the power supply designed as part of the same package
- Metering, standard and smart
- Utility diversions and disconnections, including Section 278 coordination
- Temporary builders supply, so your site has power from day one
Because we hold all three accreditations, we can put electricity, gas and water into one coordinated programme rather than leaving you to run three. On most schemes that is where the largest saving sits.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you work across the whole of England?
Yes. We deliver connections across all nine regions of England, and we work across the wider UK, with England as our primary focus. Our office is in Stockport.
How do I find out which network operator covers my site?
Each utility has its own licence areas and they do not match each other or the regional map. Tell us the site address and we will confirm which electricity, gas and water operators serve it before any application is submitted.
Does being based in Stockport mean you only work locally?
No. Accreditations under NERS, GIRS and WIRS are national, and we deliver across England. Stockport is where our office is, not the limit of where we work.
Can you deliver all three utilities anywhere in England?
Yes. Holding all three accreditations means we can design and build electricity, gas and water connections in any region, coordinating the relevant operators on your behalf.
Which regions have the most difficult connection conditions?
It depends on the utility. West London has had the most severe electricity capacity constraints. The East of England and South East carry the most significant water availability constraints. The South East has the most fragmented operator map, and the South West the longest distances.
Tell Us Where Your Site Is
Wherever it is in England, we will confirm which operators serve it, what your connection needs, and what it will take to deliver. Accredited across electricity, gas and water, one point of contact throughout.