Heathrow ‘considering’ legal action against National Grid after substation fire

Heathrow has confirmed it is “considering” taking legal action against the National Grid following an electricity substation fire resulting in a near day-long closure of the airport on March 21.

The airport closure caused thousands of flights to be cancelled and affected 270,000 passengers.

A report this week by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) said a “catastrophic failure” of one of the transformer’s high voltage bushings at National Grid Electricity Transmission’s 275kV substation caused the transformer to catch fire, causing a loss of supply to one of Heathrow’s supply points.

It made several recommendations to reduce the likelihood and impact of a similar event in future. 

A Heathrow spokesperson confirmed to Travel Weekly that the airport was considering legal action, adding: “Heathrow welcomes this report, which sheds further light on the external power supply failure that forced the airport’s closure on March 21. 

“A combination of outdated regulation, inadequate safety mechanisms, and National Grid’s failure to maintain its infrastructure led to this catastrophic power outage. 

“We expect National Grid to be carefully considering what steps they can take to ensure this isn’t repeated.

“Our own Review, led by former Cabinet Minister Ruth Kelly, identified key areas for improvement and work is already underway to implement all 28 recommendations.”