A £54bn plan has been proposed by National Grid, the UK's electricity system operator (ESO), to improve Britain's wind power network by 2030.
In a report outlining its proposals, National Grid ESO, which is a legally separate business within National Grid PLC (LSE:NG.), said it was the biggest network upgrade in 60 years.
The upgrade of the offshore network infrastructure would cost £32bn, while recommended onshore projects would cost £21.7bn, it said.
But critics have described the plan as "shortsighted and shameful", BBC News reported.
Thursday saw bidders for new renewable energy projects awarded contracts worth 23 Gigawatt (GW) of electricity - enough to power 24mln homes at current consumption.
As a result of the auction, offshore wind power prices reached a new record low, a quarter of what gas-generated power costs.
The UK now has over 11,000 on and offshore wind turbines, which produce nearly a quarter of the country's electricity.
Under its proposals, National Grid ESO expects to deliver 50GW of offshore wind power by 2030 - a third of the UK's energy demand - and create 168,000 jobs.
National Grid said these infrastructure projects make it possible to connect 18 offshore wind farms with a combined capacity of 23GW, to deliver offshore wind farm energy to Great Britain's consumers.
More than £50bn of investments are projected in the plan over the next eight years, while consumer savings of around £5.5bn are expected by 2030.
In England and Wales, the transmission network is operated by National Grid, whereas in Scotland it is operated by SSE in the north and by Iberdrola SA's Scottish Power in the south.
SSE PLC (LSE:SSE) said National Grid's report confirms the need for over £7bn in the north of Scotland, boosting confidence in the company's growth outlook.
Critics have voiced concern that National Grid is not listening to local residents opposed to the building of new power lines.
Previously announced onshore power lines, which are yet to be built, will span large areas of rural East Anglia, according to BBC News.
Rosie Pearson, a spokesperson for the group Essex Suffolk Norfolk Pylons, told the BBC that the plans failed "abysmally" to address the concerns of "over 21,000 who have signed a petition calling to have this network offshore".
"It's short-sighted and shameful," she said. "East Anglia is being thrown under a bus while significant additional offshore networking over much longer distances has been recommended for Scotland and North England."
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