Energy companies have been given the green light to spend £28bn on Great Britain’s gas and electricity grids, raising fears of higher household bills.

The energy watchdog, Ofgem , approved more than £17.8bn of spending plans to upgrade gas transmission and distribution networks in the five years from 2026.

A further £10.3bn will be used to rewire the nation’s high-voltage electricity network – the biggest expansion of the grid since the 1960s, and the first phase of a planned £80bn upgrade of the power grid.

The multibillion-pound plans are higher than the £24bn budget proposed by the regulator in the summer.

The plans will fund more than 80 projects, including new high-voltage power cables, and upgrades to the existing overhead wires, ahead of the government’s plan to become a gre

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