NATIONAL Grid has announced the potential sale of a majority stake in its gas distribution business in an effort to rebalance its portfolio.

It confirms media reports from the weekend, which claimed the total gas network could be worth as much as £10 billion.

The operator has 82,000 miles (131,966km) of pipeline, which delivers gas to about 11 million customers.

The potential sale is planned for the second half of its financial year and would allow the firm to deliver a growing dividend to shareholders, chief executive Steve Holliday said.

"In the second half of 2015/16 we will begin a process to rebalance our portfolio through the potential sale of a majority stake in our UK gas distribution business.

"The UK gas distribution business has been an important part of National Grid and the sale of a majority stake will realise some of the value we have created for our shareholders."

The group made the announcement in its first-half results, which saw adjusted operating profits increase 14 per cent £1.8 billion. Profit before tax was £1.3 billion, up 21 per cent on the same period last year.

Mr Holliday said: "Our business has delivered a strong performance in the first half of the year while maintaining high standards of safety and reliability for our customers and increasing our level of investment.

"Headline profits have benefited from an excellent performance from our interconnectors and property activities, which are strongly weighted towards the first half."

The grid, which last week was forced to ask big industrial power users to curb their demand following an unexpected electricity supply crunch, said that “sufficient generation” would be available this winter, despite what was likely to be “the tightest winter for a number of years” for the supply margin.

It anticipated making further, similar requests to large consumers next winter, as well as calling on back-up power plants should supplies fall short again.

Under measures introduced by the government a year ago, and to combat the shortfall in capacity resulting from older, uneconomic coal-fired power stations being shut down, the grid has agreed contracts with suppliers to bring on idle capacity when needed, but also with big business users to reduce their demand.