E.DSO welcomes the Commission’s proposal for revising the Regulation (EU) No 347/2013 (“TEN-E Regulation”). We consider the revision of the TEN-E regulation as a key opportunity for Europe to make the regulatory framework fit for purpose.
Accelerated electrification of end-uses and higher loads of RES will require grid reinforcements mainly at distribution level. Grid will have to get smarter to better integrate these new evolutions. Strengthening smart grids development in Europe is key, including through legislative frameworks such as the TEN-E Regulation and dedicated funds such as the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). Indeed, a recent study carried out by E.DSO, Eurelectric and Deloitte, highlights that approximately €400 billion investments are required in the distribution networks to fully achieve the energy transition in 2030.
We consider that, in the future, projects benefitting from a Projects of Common Interest (PCIs) status should contribute to meeting the EU’s decarbonisation objectives. Therefore, only those projects that are fully in line with the climate neutrality goal should receive funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). To make the regulatory framework fit for purpose we focus a particular attention to Article 16 and 17 of the TEN-E Regulation.
E.DSO would like to take the opportunity to make some suggestions for amendments on how the Regulation could be further improved. Those amendments are based on the well thought-out reflections of E.DSO experts and we remain at policy makers’ disposal to discuss further in detail on the development of the infrastructure necessary to the achievement of EU objectives.
