New Grids Package proposal puts grid optimization first 

10 December – Today the European Commission unveiled its ambitious Grids Package, which includes strong measures to optimize the existing grid in order to keep costs low for Europeans. “An optimization-first approach will save hundreds of billions of euros for European citizens, and increase the resilience, efficiency and overall capabilities of the existing grid’, says Layla Sawyer, Secretary General of CurrENT. 

The new TEN-E proposal recognizes the important role of non-wire solutions, and other innovative grid technologies, and how optimizing the existing grid first will deliver a more efficient electricity grid. However, what is still missing is the additional recognition for reinforcement and innovation on the wires and cables side. New types of cables can double, triple, or even increase by tenfold the capacity of a single line. This will speed up grid expansion, reduce environmental impact, and use less raw materials. 

The new proposal today also empowers the Commission to develop a central scenario consistent with EU energy and climate targets in order to deliver a cost-efficient system at EU level. While it is great to see the commitment from the European Commission to plan an optimized grid at European level, what is still missing is how to measure if Europe is going fast enough. How do we assess where the technological gaps are to deliver in the timeframe needed? 

CurrENT welcomes this new proposal and encourages the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU to continue in this direction and strengthen the proposal even further in the upcoming months.