Speakers

Nicola started her career in government, managing and regulating industrial regeneration projects. Later she became involved in health and safety regulation and she remains a chartered health and safety enforcement officer still. Nicola joined National Grid in 2007 to manage its portfolio of contaminated land in the UK, and subsequently led its Commercial Property Business. Thereafter, in an Executive role in the UK Electricity System Operator, she led Electricity Market Development, shaping the commercial and technical frameworks that govern the electricity industry, including commencing a comprehensive review of how transmission and distribution companies in the UK recover revenues and how the cost is apportioned between system users. In 2017, Nicola began leading National Grid’s UK Electricity Construction division, delivering some of the nation’s most important major infrastructure projects to maintain the electricity transmission system and connect new generation that will deliver the UK’s net zero targets. Investing £bn’s per annum, Nicola was responsible for a portfolio of projects that included major tunnelling projects, overhead line routes and sub-sea interconnectors. Appointed as Managing Director of National Grid Interconnectors in 2021, Nicola was responsible for business development, construction and commercial operation of world’s largest sub-sea Interconnector fleet and providing 15% of the UK’s electricity. Working closely with European governments, regulators and windfarm operators, she successfully influenced the introduction of legislation and policy to enable next generation interconnectors that connect windfarms at sea as well as sharing power between nations. In April 2023, Nicola and her family relocated to Massachusetts where she is currently Chief Operating Officer of National Grid’s New England Electric business, responsible for Electricity Distribution, Transmission and Interconnection to Canada. In addition to serving customers’ daily needs, leading storm response and investing $bn’s per annum in the networks, the New England Electric business is firmly focussed on the clean energy transition and delivering strategic investments to enable the Massachusetts state goals for electrification by 2050.