J. Murphy & Sons · Power · Strategic partnership tender · Murphy element £2bn
Great Grid Partnership
Securing a place in the biggest overhaul of the electricity grid in generations
The project
National Grid’s Great Grid Upgrade is rebuilding the transmission network in England and Wales to carry clean power from new offshore wind farms, as electricity demand is expected to rise by half by 2035. To deliver it, National Grid set up the Great Grid Partnership: a long-term alliance of design and construction partners working across its accelerated strategic transmission (ASTI) projects, backed by a £9bn supply chain framework.
The challenge
Only five construction partners would be chosen, from the UK’s largest contractors. Bidders had to show they could deliver at pace, help close the industry’s skills and supply chain gaps, and work collaboratively in a long-term partnership, not just price a single project.
What we did
Working inside Murphy’s bid team, we produced all the technical content across the submission: storyboarding answers, shaping win themes around Murphy’s power and tunnelling track record, and writing to the scoring criteria. We worked with SMEs across the business and refined responses through review cycles.
The outcome
The bid won Murphy a place on National Grid’s framework. In May 2024, National Grid named Murphy as one of five construction partners in the Great Grid Partnership, alongside Laing O’Rourke, Morgan Sindall Infrastructure, Morrison Energy Services and Omexom/Taylor Woodrow. Murphy’s element of the partnership is worth £2bn. The partnership began on nine ASTI projects across England and Wales, supporting the target of connecting 50GW of offshore wind by 2030. Murphy is now delivering projects collaboratively with National Grid.
Services we provided
Let’s talk
Tell us what you’re bidding for and we’ll get back to you. One point of contact who leads your bid, backed by a team producing the content.