Annual Development Plan for the Distribution network – 2026 to 2028
Welcome
Evolve, formally SGN Natural Gas, was awarded the licence to design, develop, and operate the new distribution network for the west of Northern Ireland in February 2015. Since then Evolve has delivered over 500km of mains making gas available to over 30,000 properties to date in Coalisland, Cookstown, Derrylin, Dungannon, Enniskillen, Magherafelt, Omagh and Strabane. Evolve’s aim is to help domestic consumers and businesses in the region move away from traditional, carbon intensive fossil fuels such as coal and oil, to gas in the short term, before then transitioning them to green gases such as biomethane through their existing gas boiler and without the need for additional equipment.
Our first Price Control (GD17) covered the period 1st January 2018 to 31st December 2022. On 1st January 2023, our second Price Control (GD23) began. This publication describes our development plan for the period 2026 to the end of 2028. During this period, we will deliver a further 51km of new distribution gas infrastructure for Northern Ireland customers. In delivering this we will continue to focus on providing value for money for customers through adhering to the regulated price control process in which the Utility Regulator (UR) has set our priorities and allowed revenue.
At Evolve, stakeholder involvement guides, supports and enables everything we do. It helps us ensure our plans meet customers’ needs and expectations and drives improvements through efficiency, innovation, excellence in customer service, while working in partnership with local communities and suppliers. We believe effective engagement comes from working directly and collaboratively with all our stakeholders.
We are committed to decarbonising our network by 2030. A milestone in this journey was the injection of Biomethane into our network during November 2023. This achievement is a testament to our dedication to sustainable energy solutions and the broader mission to decarbonise the west of Northern Ireland. As we embrace cleaner energy alternatives, we will always consider the wellbeing of our communities and the delicate balance that must be met between economic viability and environmental responsibility.
In addition to the information publications and community events which are on-going, we invite you to share your opinions on the project and, if interested, connecting to the network. Details of how to contact us are in the Working Together section at the back of this publication.
By working together, we can maximise the number of customers who can benefit from a decarbonised network as quickly as possible, invest in a sustainable future, support low-income and vulnerable customers in the communities we serve and contribute to greater regional development in Northern Ireland.
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Evolve is delighted to have this opportunity to build and operate gas infrastructure for all our customers in Northern Ireland and we look forward to delivering value for money for all customers who can benefit from this new infrastructure.
David Butler Director, Evolve
1. Why Evolve?
Our vision is to keep customers safe and warm by leading the way in energy delivery. Our strategy underpinning the development and operation of our network is driven by the desire to play our part in making SGN the UK’s number one gas distribution company. To be number one we need to play our part. We are focused on being ‘the most effective and efficient’ GDN (Gas Distribution Network) in Northern Ireland, being the most ‘customer orientated’; and finally, ‘being the number one employer of great teams”.
These values guide how we operate as a business and in delivering the Gas to the West project, Evolve will adhere to the values as set out below which are based on SGN’s experience operating in the UK:
2. Gas to the West background
In February 2015 Evolve was awarded the licence to build and operate the natural gas distribution network and infrastructure as part of the overall Gas to the West project.
This publication summarises our development plan, agreed with the UR in September 20161 and updated in October 20222 for the GD23 Price Control, to deliver natural gas to seven Districts3 including Coalisland, Cookstown, Derrylin, Dungannon, Enniskillen, Magherafelt, Omagh and Strabane.
Our plan proposes to lay gas mains, in a timescale which will ensure almost every street within the scope of the project can be connected to the gas network by the end of the current price control GD23 (which covers the period 1st January 2023 to 31st December 2028).
1 GD17 Final Determination
2 GD23 Final Determination
3 “District” means the area covered by a District Council on the date of the grant of the Evolve conveyance licence. Our Licensed Area covers the District of Derry (specifically the Electoral Wards of Banagher and Claudy) but no targets are set in our licence for this District.
Figure 1 - HP and IP systems supplying Gas to the West
3. Development Plan
Our licence sets out obligations under condition 3.2 to bring into operation the network for each category of customer, in each financial year and within each of the seven Districts covered by Gas to the West, ensuring we pass a specified number of premises and that they are capable of being connected.
The table below summarises the details set out in annex 2 to part 3 of our licence. Condition 3.2.1 sets out that we must meet:
• 50% of the annual Connection Type target for the relevant District in each financial year;
• 50% of the annual Total Target for each District in each financial year; and
• 90% of the Cumulative Target for each financial year.
Our initial targets were set by the UR under the GD17 price control and have recently been revised by the UR under the GD23 price control which covers the period January 2023 to December 2028.
Throughout the GD17 price control period we carried out further work to optimise the network route and design with a view to maximising the number of customers who will have the opportunity to connect to our network and benefit from natural gas. We presented our revised plans in our GD23 Business Plan in June 2021. In this plan we have proposed a network development programme which looks to roll out the network across all seven Districts in the most efficient manner. This will help deliver the wide range of benefits set by the UR and the Department for the Economy (DfE) for the Gas to the West project.
The development programme will allow customers to benefit from a reliable, convenient, and affordable energy source which has lower carbon emissions relative to coal and oil. It will also help increase employment opportunities in Northern Ireland while helping to improve business competitiveness. Our programme also provides greater opportunity to deliver efficiency savings and by connecting more customers we can increase transportation volumes. This will help spread the cost and reduce customers’ bills.
The UR has reviewed our business plan and published the Final Determination in October 2022 which sets our priorities and revenues for Gas to the West, for the period to the end of December 2028. We are also obliged by our licence to send to the UR a report no later than 1 March each year, setting out progress in developing the network relative to targets.
This Annual Development Plan has been developed in accordance with Condition 3.2.5 of the Evolve Gas licence for the conveyance of gas in Northern Ireland. This plan sets out progress up to 31 December 2025 and complies with the conditions set out in the General Development Plan – Annex 3, Part 3. It also sets out our network development plans for the next three years, until 31 December 2028.
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3.1 Connections to the Evolve network in 2025
Commercial operations on our network started in January 2017. At the end of December 2025, a total of 5,251 network connections had been completed. The table below sets out the total number of connections to the network during 2025.
3.2 Network Construction (Cumulative)
3.2.1 Intermediate Pressure Mains
Construction of 142km of Intermediate Pressure (7 bar) gas mains was completed by the end of 2019.
During 2017, Evolve commissioned 30km of Intermediate Pressure (7 bar) gas mains from Maydown to Strabane constructed during 2016.
During 2018, 92.7km of gas mains were constructed in the Intermediate Pressure pipelines to Cookstown, Magherafelt, Derrylin, Dungannon, Enniskillen and Omagh.
During 2019, 19.3km of gas mains were constructed in the Intermediate Pressure pipelines to Cookstown, Magherafelt, Derrylin, Dungannon, Enniskillen and Omagh and during 2020 a further 0.3 km of gas mains were constructed in the Intermediate Pressure pipelines.
At the end of 2020, all IP (Intermediate Pressure) pipelines for the network were completed, therefore no further gas mains have been constructed at that pressure since 2020
3.2.2 Distribution Mains
To date over 443 km of distribution gas mains have been constructed within the Gas to the West Licensed Area. The table below shows distribution gas mains laid in 2025.
3.3 Supplier Arrangements and Volumes
At the end of 2019, five gas suppliers had completed their market readiness process enabling them to supply customers via our gas network. All five gas suppliers remained active on the Evolve network during 2025. Volumes for 2025 calendar year are set out in the table below:
3.4 Biomethane Injection
During November 2023 the first Biomethane injection site connected to the Evolve network. As part of these arrangements, a sixth supplier (Ceres Energy) registered on the Evolve network to allow them to make arrangements with the Biomethane injection site for the delivery of green gas to the network.
4. Stakeholder engagement influence on our plan
Since receipt of our licence to deliver the Gas to the West project, Evolve has actively sought to engage with the broadest set of stakeholders possible. This has included communications with the business community, particularly energy intensive consumers, councils, councillors, Assembly Members, landowners, business representative groups and most importantly, the communities along our pipeline route. This engagement has brought about valuable knowledge, which we have embedded within our plan proposals. Evolve has also employed the services of a local communications company to assist with the development of our stakeholder engagement strategy and this will ensure we efficiently connect with the broad spectrum of stakeholders across our network area.
Feedback from potential commercial and domestic customers has allowed us to develop a more efficient route that aims to maximise the number of connections and volume of natural gas transported in our pipelines thereby delivering the best possible unit cost to customers.
We want to see local employment arising from this project. Stakeholders have confirmed they support this view, and our build maximises this potential.
Evolve regularly meet with key stakeholders across Northern Ireland to discuss the importance of injecting biomethane into the gas grid and explore pathways to support Northern Ireland’s decarbonisation goals. This reflects Evolve’s commitment to encouraging collaboration among government bodies, businesses, and the community to accelerate the transition to a green energy economy.
5. Efficiency of our plan
5.1 Capital expenditure to date
Capital expenditure is mainly that which is required to deliver the physical assets of the new natural gas network. To ensure we are delivering best value for money for consumers we have utilised the experience and efficiency of SGN in GB in competitive tender rates for our build.
Given the cost impact of the unique characteristics associated with NI we have actively engaged with the UR to develop a capital spend programme for the GD23 Price Control period. The analysis we conducted provided robust evidence based on experience to inform the benchmarking process and subsequent capital expenditure allowances.
5.2 Operating Expenditure
Operating expenditure covers the day-to-day business running. Our forecast costs of operating the network seek to leverage SGN’s experience and by entering service provision agreements, build on group efficiencies and expertise. The business plan operating costs have been informed by our engagement with stakeholders and include provisions for needed supports to enable conversions to take place and the costs associated with the timelines for the price control and capex build.
6. Working together – how to get involved
We have recently agreed the distribution tariffs for 2026 with the UR for all customer groups, domestic, commercial and industrial. These are published on our website5 . We really value your opinion and would appreciate your views to help inform our build proposals. You can write to us about any aspect of our development plan using the email or address below.
There are many other ways that you can also get involved in our project. We would be very happy to hear from you if you would:
• Like to be invited to our events;
• Like to be involved in our customer panels; or
• Like to receive any notifications of future publications or consultations.
If you would like to talk to us about how you can get involved, please contact us:
Email: info@evolvenetwork.co.uk Phone: 0800 975 7774 Or Write to us: Evolve Blackwater House 14 Silverwood Industrial Estate Lurgan BT66 6LN
For general updates and information, please visit our website: www.evolvenetwork.co.uk
We look forward to hearing from you