A consultation on how to tender out new onshore electricity transmission infrastructure projects has been launched.

Ofgem is inviting views on the detail of how onshore tendering would work for projects worth more than £100 million, including how eligible projects would be identified.

The regulator expects the first tender to take place in 2017.

It claims since 2009 tenders have saved consumers between £200 million and £400 million so far.

Ofgem now wants to apply the method to new, high-value onshore infrastructure projects.

That means the three monopoly transmission firms – National Grid Electricity Transmission, Scottish Hydro Electricity Transmission and ScottishPower Transmission – will have to compete against other firms for the right to build and own new assets.

They would include new overhead lines, cables and substations or a complete replacement of existing ones.

Ofgem CEO Dermot Nolan said: “Part of our role is to ensure that customers pay no more for energy infrastructure than they have to. We took a ground-breaking approach by opening up ownership of offshore links to competition and now we are going further. In future we will tender out high-value electricity infrastructure projects onshore. This ensures that customers get even better value for money from Britain’s grids.”

The current price control for the three companies runs from 2013 to 2021.

The deadline for responses is 11th January 2016.