European Union countries have agreed to improve the interconnection of Europe’s electricity grids and expand them more quickly, ahead of negotiations with the European Parliament on the details of the reform.
“Our electricity grids are no longer just a supporting infrastructure. The electricity grids form the operating system of the energy transition,” said German Energy Minister Katherina Reiche on the sidelines of a meeting of EU energy ministers in Luxembourg.
“We must expand them quickly,” she added.
One major aim of the reform is to ensure that more affordable wind and solar power reaches the places where it is needed, thereby reducing price fluctuations and regional price differences.
In addition, EU member states want the energy system to be more resilient and better protected against physical and cyberattacks.
Under the plans, permits are also to be granted more quickly.
Europe’s electricity grids are the greatest obstacle to the EU’s efforts to reduce energy prices, decarbonize and become more independent, said EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen.
A great deal of energy is being generated that is waiting to be fed into the grid – but the grids are not yet as developed as they should be, he said.
One well-known example is that electricity generated in Denmark often cannot be fed into the German grids as efficiently as it should be because the latter lack sufficient capacity, Jørgensen said.
Improving the grid, however, required massive investments, with the European Commission estimating that more than €1 trillion (€1.14 trillion) would be needed by 2040.