Interview: Alice Delahunty on engineering leadership, grid transformation and the end of the “trilemma”

Alice: I’ve worked on coal stations, new CCGTs in Slovakia and offshore wind before joining National Grid, so I’ve lived the energy transition in real time. That breadth helps: many challenges look different on the surface, but the underlying engineering skills—curiosity, structured problem‑solving, commissioning discipline—transfer well. It’s also important that engineers can connect technical choices to the wider context: policy signals, macroeconomics and what customers ultimately need.

“Engineering skills transfer: they help you solve new problems without being held back by legacy thinking.”

Adam: The sector is often framed as an “energy trilemma”: affordability, reliability and decarbonisation. When these goals collide, how do you approach prioritisation—and bring stakeholders with you?

Alice: Engineering and leadership are about optimising, not choosing a binary trade‑off. In volatile economic and political conditions, we have to keep sight of long‑term objectives and do the basics brilliantly—reliability, cost discipline and operational performance—because trust is earned there. The original “trilemma” also reflects a moment when renewables were less cost‑effective. Today the question is often how, what and in what order: sequencing investments, being transparent with stakeholders, and responding to new realities such as rapid load growth from electrification and data centres. I sometimes think it’s time to “retire the trilemma” and have a richer conversation about optimisation.

“Maybe it’s time to retire the energy trilemma—and talk instead about sequencing and optimisation.”

Adam: With unprecedented investment and 2030 targets, what engineering mindset shift is needed to move from project‑by‑project delivery to holistic network design that anticipates future needs?

Alice: We need to design for the future, which means being able to visualise different pathways and scenario‑plan over longer horizons. A big‑picture view unlocks innovation: holistic design is not just about thermal loading or bulk power transfer, but also operability and controllability of the system. We’re also embracing technologies such as dynamic line rating. It’s a genuine mindset shift—and a huge opportunity for engineers to help unlock what comes next.

“There’s a huge opportunity for engineers right now—to unlock the future.”

Adam: You’ve said the net‑zero challenge is too large to exclude any pool of talent. How can the sector treat diversity and inclusion as a strategic necessity—especially with significant workforce turnover expected in the next decade?

Alice: Energy is too important—and frankly too interesting—to exclude any group or individual. Leaders have a responsibility to secure the competencies and capacity we’ll need. We see fantastic career conversions through apprenticeships; one example is a former kitchen designer who is now a substation engineer. For a challenge of this scale, we need a full set of experiences: diverse teams are better at navigating risk and solving complex problems. And we need engineers who are accessible and visible—able to explain why projects matter, engage beyond a narrow technical space, and build trust with communities. That capability depends on having a workforce that truly reflects society.

“The energy industry is too interesting to exclude anyone—and diverse teams navigate risk better.”

Adam: Load growth is returning—driven by data centres, electrification and shifting generation. How is this changing long‑term planning and capital allocation?

Alice: The connection queue is showing very significant demand growth. For National Grid Electricity Transmission, we have around 660MW across five projects connecting this year—and it is growing quickly, including major interest from data‑centre developers. Our RIIO‑T3 plan set a good direction with the market on resourcing and delivery, and we have further innovation in the pipeline. That includes exploring ultra‑high‑voltage bulk transfer circuits, creating strategically located demand hubs, and working with AI partners to understand how data centres can modulate demand without impacting computing performance. Done well, flexibility can accelerate connections and, in some cases, reduce the need for major reinforcement—helping us optimise rather than forcing false trade‑offs.

“We’re exploring how data centres can modulate demand without impacting computing—potentially avoiding major reinforcement.”

Adam: You must deliver extreme reliability while facing escalating cyber risk and more severe weather. How do you balance protecting aging infrastructure with delivering new interconnections at pace?

Alice: First, the reliability and performance of the existing asset base is non‑negotiable. Where we have major work at a location, we’ll often bundle delivery so we can maintain and upgrade the legacy network alongside new requirements. Second, we use the inherent redundancy of the system, making informed choices with the System Operator about outages and access: delivering more work on a live system inevitably means taking more network out of service, so decisions need to be coordinated with stakeholders. Alongside this, resilience against external threats matters. Flood‑protection investments from the last price review have served us well, and cyber is an ever‑evolving landscape where we know we need to go further and faster. It can feel like “everything everywhere all at once”; operational discipline is how we make sure maintenance, resilience and system access are all moving forward together.

“It can feel like everything everywhere all at once—we have to accept that reality and find a way through.”

Adam: What decision in recent years looked conservative or unpopular at the time—but you now see as essential for customers and the long‑term health of the system?

Alice: The most obvious one—still ongoing—is reforming the connections process. An ever‑growing queue creates perpetual uncertainty and, in practice, included multiples of storage and generation volumes far beyond any credible scenario. Every project is important, but meeting everyone’s expectations simply wasn’t possible. Working with the System Operator, we had to stop uncontrolled growth and get back to real, credible, needed and ready projects. It has been difficult and could be perceived as anti‑market, but it’s the right thing for consumers, affordability and communities hosting this infrastructure. Around 300GW of projects have already been removed from the pipeline.

“We had to stop uncontrolled growth and get back to credible, needed and ready projects.”

Adam: Major infrastructure reshapes communities. What does being a “good neighbour” look like for utility leaders—and how do you build long‑term social acceptance?

Alice: First, we have to respect communities: engage early, listen hard and understand what genuinely matters locally. That means being willing to adjust through the planning and development cycle, and acknowledging that this infrastructure can be difficult for some places to host. Transparency also matters—people may not agree with every decision, but they should understand the choices and trade‑offs. Finally, we should aim to leave a positive legacy: skills, jobs and environmental outcomes that communities recognise as lasting benefits.

“It’s on us to engage early, be transparent, and leave a legacy of skills, jobs and environmental value.”

Adam: Looking back, what leadership behaviours help most when the operating environment becomes unpredictable and fast‑moving?

Alice: In a dynamic sector, protecting the status quo rarely works. What I value is the ability to spot what is changing, distil the signal from the noise, and then mobilise at pace—technically, commercially and organisationally. I remember periods in gas generation when global fundamentals shifted quickly; the best leaders explained clearly what was happening, what it meant for people’s work, and what new capabilities were needed. That clarity and speed of mobilisation matter just as much now.

Adam: What advice would you give to a 16‑year‑old choosing subjects and career paths today?

Alice: You can’t imagine how much the world will change over the span of a career. I applied for wind resource modelling and ended up doing high‑voltage testing on a coal station—after a master’s in mathematical modelling. So don’t be too rigid about your plan. Go in with an open mind and be ready to learn; opportunities often appear in places you didn’t expect.

Adam: Any final thoughts for the wider CIGRE community?

Alice: CIGRE is a fantastic community for moving the industry forward. Earlier in my career I led an “emerging technologies” innovation team, sponsored PhDs with universities, and contributed to committees and working groups—an experience I remember as a real accelerant for learning. That ability to share practical experience across organisations and countries is invaluable, especially now.