Who is my DNO? How to find your network operator
The fastest reliable way to find your distribution network operator (DNO) is the first two digits of your electricity meter's MPAN. This guide explains how to read it, lists all 14 UK distribution areas, and covers the cases where the answer is an independent operator or you have no meter yet. This site is not a network operator or an installer.
Find your DNO from your MPAN
Type the first two digits of your MPAN below. This is the Energy Networks Association's own mapping, from its Distributed Generation Connection Guide (March 2025).
How to read the MPAN
An MPAN printed in full is 21 digits, usually shown in two lines on a bill. The bottom line is the long unique number (13 digits, the "core"), and its first two digits are the distributor ID: that is the pair to use here. The top line begins with a profile class code and other billing codes, so its first two digits are not a DNO code. If you only have a 13-digit number, its first two digits are the ones you want. The MPAN may also appear on the meter itself. A business with several meters on different sites can have a different DNO for each site, so check each one.
The 14 distribution areas
Each of the 14 licensed areas has one operator, and six companies run them (the operator names below are current trading names; the right-hand column follows the ENA's table). Areas do not follow county or council boundaries (area 13, for example, covers Cheshire, Merseyside and North Wales), so use the MPAN rather than guessing from the address.
| MPAN first two digits | Service area | Operator | Distribution business (as the ENA lists it) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Eastern England | UK Power Networks | UK Power Networks, Eastern England |
| 11 | East Midlands | National Grid Electricity Distribution | NGED, East Midlands |
| 12 | London | UK Power Networks | London Power Networks (LPN) |
| 13 | Cheshire, Merseyside and North Wales | SP Energy Networks | SP Energy Networks, Cheshire, Merseyside and North Wales |
| 14 | West Midlands | National Grid Electricity Distribution | NGED, West Midlands |
| 15 | North Eastern England | Northern Powergrid | Northern Powergrid (NPg) |
| 16 | North Western England | Electricity North West | Electricity North West Limited (ENWL) |
| 17 | Northern Scotland | Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks | Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution |
| 18 | Southern Scotland | SP Energy Networks | SP Energy Networks |
| 19 | South Eastern England | UK Power Networks | South Eastern Power Networks (SPN) |
| 20 | Southern England | Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks | Southern Electric Power Distribution |
| 21 | Southern Wales | National Grid Electricity Distribution | NGED, South Wales |
| 22 | South Western England | National Grid Electricity Distribution | NGED, South West |
| 23 | Yorkshire | Northern Powergrid | Northern Powergrid (NPg) |
Six companies, 14 licence areas: UK Power Networks (10, 12, 19), National Grid Electricity Distribution (11, 14, 21, 22), SP Energy Networks (13, 18), Electricity North West (16), Northern Powergrid (15, 23) and Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (17, 20).
When the answer is an IDNO
Numbers from 24 upward belong to independent distribution network operators. The ENA guide describes an IDNO as a company that designs, builds, owns and operates a distribution system that extends an existing DNO network, typically for new developments such as business parks and residential areas. IDNOs are regulated like DNOs but have fewer licence conditions and, importantly, no service area: an IDNO network can sit inside any DNO's area. If your unit is on a recent business park, check the MPAN before assuming the local DNO. For a generation or battery connection to an IDNO's network the ENA says the process is almost identical to a DNO connection, with a few exceptions your IDNO will set out.
No meter yet, or no bill to hand
For a new building, a site not yet connected, or a unit where the bill sits with a landlord, the ENA guide gives two routes. You can contact the DNO whose area you believe you are in, and it can confirm whether you are on its network. Or you can use the Energy Networks Association's find my network operator page. For a tenanted unit, the landlord or managing agent usually holds the MPAN and the bills. Ask for the MPAN in writing; you will need it for any connection application.
Why your DNO matters for a battery
A commercial battery is treated as generation, so it needs the network operator's agreement before it runs in parallel with the network. That makes the DNO the counterparty for every step that follows:
- The G99 application. It goes to your operator, on its forms or portal. See the G99 application guide for the stages, the 45 and 65 working-day quotation clocks, and the fees an operator can charge.
- Network capacity. Each operator publishes a Long Term Development Statement about its network, and the ENA guide lists the link for each one. For the jargon on a connection offer, see our G99 jargon buster.
- Constrained connections. Where the local network is tight, a G100 export-limitation scheme can let a battery connect inside the existing agreed capacity; see our guide to G100 on a constrained grid.
- Witnessing and commissioning. Whether the operator witnesses the tests is set out in the connection offer; the commissioning guide explains what is tested and the documents to ask for.
Your DNO and your installer are different parties. The installer designs and builds the battery; the DNO decides whether and how it connects. If you are choosing an installer, our installer checklist includes the questions to ask about who manages the DNO application and who signs the compliance forms.
Next steps
- Work out whether your battery is G98 or G99 with the checker in the G99 application guide.
- Read how long a commercial battery installation takes once the DNO milestone is on the plan.
- Check whether a container needs planning permission alongside the connection offer.