National Grid reported underlying operating profit of GBP 5.7 billion, lifted capital expenditure by more than 20% to GBP 11.6 billion and grew its assets by 10.9% in a year that also saw underlying earnings per share rise 8% at constant currency. The utility increased its dividend by 3.8%, in line with inflation, and said it had reached its synergies target early.

The numbers matter because National Grid is not slowing down. It reaffirmed a five-year investment plan of at least GBP 70 billion and said it now expects around 10% annual asset growth, EPS growth of 8% to 10%, and dividend growth tied to CPIH inflation. For FY2027, it guided to EPS growth of 13% to 15%, a signal that the company sees room for further momentum after the latest year of stronger results.

Zoë Yujnovich, who became chief executive last autumn, framed the update as evidence of “the momentum we’re building.” That momentum is being measured in hard cash. About two-thirds of the investment plan is already covered by regulatory agreements, and delivery mechanisms are secured for three-quarters of it, giving the company a clearer path to spend at scale without waiting for every piece to fall into place.

The company said roughly GBP 40 billion of the plan will go into its U.K. regulated businesses, including about GBP 31 billion for transmission and GBP 9 billion for distribution. That program is designed to connect up to 35 gigawatts of new generation and 19 gigawatts of new demand over the next five years, while also requiring National Grid to recruit around 6,000 full-time employees and 2,000 graduates and apprentices in the U.K.

Across the Atlantic, National Grid plans to invest around GBP 29 billion in New York and New England, with approximately GBP 17 billion earmarked for New York and GBP 12 billion for New England. The broader five-year plan is aimed at grid expansion, electrification and demand from data centers and reshoring, and the company says its strategy is centered on performance, technology, operational execution and innovation across its U.K. and U.S. businesses.

The tension in the story is that the company is committing to one of its biggest spending programs at the same time power demand, new generation and industrial reshoring are putting fresh strain on networks that already need major upgrades. National Grid is betting that the regulatory framework, investment mechanisms and its own execution will keep pace with that pressure. If they do, the next few years should be defined less by whether it can spend and more by how quickly it can turn that spending into live connections on both sides of the Atlantic.