On 21 October, the Cleantech Friendship Group welcomed the Commissioner for Energy and Housing Dan Jørgensen at the European Parliament in Strasbourg for a breakfast event on Next-Gen Grids: Innovation, Security and Investment.
This event brought together Members of the Cleantech Friendship Group Lídia Pereira, Thomas Pellerin-Carlin, Paulo Cunha, Niels Flemming Hansen, Pascal Canfin, Barry Andrews, Michael Bloss, Kai Tegethoff, Sofie Eriksson, Bruno Tobback and Matthias Ecke with grid innovators for a very timely discussion, as the European Commission is about to publish its Grids Package to accelerate the expansion, modernisation and digitalisation of European grids.
With Europe’s energy system facing mounting pressure, from the combination of aging infrastructure and rapid electrification to rising digital demand due to AI and data centres as well as increasing weaponisation, building a future-proof system is crucial. A strong grid can maximise the potential of clean energy technologies to decarbonise and strengthen Europe’s competitiveness.
Some key takeaways from the discussion are:
• A more strategic and coordinated EU-level approach to grid development, led by the European Commission, is urgently needed
• Permitting must be significantly sped up, moving from current processes taking 5-10 years to 6-24 months
• Security matters: Grids are strategic infrastructure and must be protected against attacks
• EU financing tools should be used strategically to fund grid development and mobilize private capital
• Grid flexibility and innovation are the fastest and most cost-efficient ways to expand effective grid capacity, and should be prioritised in the upcoming Grids Package
• For a successful implementation, a combination of skills, EU-level coordination, regional interconnections and public acceptance is crucial
Europe must act now – pragmatically, collectively and at scale – to turn its electricity grid from a bottleneck to the backbone of the continent’s clean energy transformation.
Learn more about the upcoming Grids package: https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/14672-European-grid-package_en
