The outset of the COVID-19 crisis was a challenging period for the European economy as thousands of businesses adjusted to a new reality of distance-based working and minimum physical interaction. DSOs were in a particularly difficult situation as we had to deal not only with our internal company adaptation to the health measures addressing the spread of COVID-19 but equally continue operating our service without disrupting the supply of electricity. This implied a tremendous challenge as electricity consumption patterns changed from professional to residential areas.
Dealing with this challenge taught us many lessons about the adaptability thanks to which we adjusted to the reality of the pandemic and about the importance of cooperation and clear communication in managing a crisis. In a way, the pandemic was instructive for our importance for the sound functioning of the EU’s economy and for our central role in the pursuit of a sustainable recovery. We derived lessons also about the opportunities brought by digitalisation for our business model and for data collection and analysis in particular. The pandemic allowed us to identify risks to the EU’s energy security – cyber threats in an increasingly digitalised distribution sector and dependencies on overseas supply.
Take a look at our paper ‘Lessons Learnt from One Year of COVID-19 in the European Electric Power Distribution Industry’ to learn more!
