National Grid Buys 70 Acres in Teesside for 3.2GW AI Data Center Substation

National Grid has acquired more than 70 acres of land at Dorman Point in Teesside to build a substation delivering up to 3.2GW of capacity — enough to power a large AI data center planned for the site of a former steelworks outside Middlesbrough.

According to reports from The Guardian and Sky News, the UK's high-voltage transmission and distribution operator signed the deal last week with Teesworks, the public-private partnership developing the site. Balfour Beatty and utility firm Steel River Power are linked to delivering the power works.

What did National Grid say?

Matt Pearce, National Grid's head of land, confirmed the acquisition in an emailed statement to MT Newswires. He said the land deal marks an "important step forward" in the substation's development, which forms part of the group's Great Grid Upgrade initiative.

"We are committed to working closely with our partners to progress the development as quickly as possible," Pearce said.

Why Teesside?

The UK government selected the site last year as part of its AI growth zone initiative. It is described as the largest brownfield development in Europe.

Key details of the project:

• The data center site is expected to span 500,000 sqm (5.38 million sq ft)
• Teesworks is listed as the primary developer
• Major US data center developers, including Google, have expressed interest
• No preferred operating or investment partner has been finalized

What happened to BP's objections?

The site selection drew pushback from oil and gas giant BP, which argued the plan would hinder its attempts to build a hydrogen plant in the area. Regulators and planners approved the data center plan last August despite the objections. BP scrapped its hydrogen project later that year.

How does this fit National Grid's wider build-out?

The Teesside acquisition is one of several substation projects National Grid has announced or completed to meet surging electricity demand from the data center sector:

• In November last year, the company started upgrade work at its Didcot substation in Oxfordshire to support regional data center growth
• It began construction at its Uxbridge Moor substation in Buckinghamshire, which will supply electricity to more than 12 new data centers
• Uxbridge Moor will be the largest substation in the UK when built, with completion expected by 2029

At 3.2GW, the planned Teesside substation ranks among the largest single-purpose grid connections tied to a data center development in the UK. The Dorman Point land purchase moves the project from site selection into delivery.

The message from Dorman Point is simple: the grid is buying land now to keep pace with AI power demand.