kW to kVA Calculator

DNO connection applications are quoted in kVA, not kW, and the difference between the two on a real site can be 10 to 25 percent depending on the load mix and the power factor. A 400 kW production line with a 0.85 power factor needs 470 kVA of supply capacity, and the connection application has to declare the kVA figure honestly or risk the offer being reissued at a higher cost. Multi-site operators planning EV rollouts or heat pump retrofits have to walk through this conversion for every site in the estate.

The financial impact of getting it right shows up in two places. First, DNO connection charges scale with the kVA being applied for, and an over-stated application can cost five-figure sums in unnecessary reinforcement. Second, the ongoing capacity standing charge on the supply contract is set by the agreed MIC in kVA, and a site that has an inflated agreed capacity is paying that monthly fee for years before anyone questions it. A capacity audit across a 30-site portfolio frequently releases enough headroom to fund the EV charger install outright.

Purely Energy works with I&C and growing mid-market clients on capacity strategy for electrification, where the supply-side conversation runs in parallel with the engineering scope. The conversion between kW and kVA is the language the DNO speaks, the half-hourly data is the evidence base, and the contract is where the savings get locked in. Getting all three lined up is the work, and the calculator here is one of the inputs.