Today (Oct 15) in Luxembourg, Energy Ministers from the 27 EU Member States met to discuss energy actions for a competitive EU. Discussions were based on the recently published Draghi Report' on the Future of European Competitiveness. SolarPower Europe has issued the following statement in reaction.
Naomi Chevillard, Head of Regulatory Affairs at SolarPower Europe (she/her):
"The discussions in today's Council showed how interlinked Europe still is with the Russian gas sector, thus the vulnerability of Europe and of our industries to future gas shocks.
Advancing flexible electrification is more than ever part of our energy security strategy. This must be at the core of the Electrification Action Plan announced by President von der Leyen.
We must also develop a pathway to make electrification competitive. Our Mission Solar 2040 shows that with more flexible electric users, interconnections and batteries, we can reduce average day ahead prices in the grid by 25%. We therefore support the Council proposal to prioritise flexibility growth through an EU Flexibility Action Plan.
The clear link between energy system flexibility, electrification, and competitiveness absolutely must be reflected in the upcoming discussions on the EU Multiannual Financial Framework. It's necessary to unlock sufficient budget, including from regional funds, for electricity infrastructure investments, in particular modernisation & digitalisation of distribution grids, financing of flexible electrification investments and de-risking of battery storage deployment."
Notes
- SolarPower Europe is the current Chair of the Electrification Alliance, which is calling for an Electrification Action Plan within the first 100 days of the new European Commission. Discover the Electrification Alliance and the #100daystoElectrify campaign.
- New modelling shows that more renewables, electrification and flexibility can boost European competitiveness, slashing average day-ahead energy prices by 25% by 2030, and by 33% by 2040, compared to 2023 prices. Discover Mission Solar 2040.
- The EU Joint Research Centre warns that Europe needs to double its energy system flexibility by 2030 and increase by sevenfold by 2050.
What is Flexibility?
Flexibility is the ability of a consumer, electricity generator, or any other technology (like storage) to adjust how they feed in electricity to the grid, or consume electricity from the grid in response to grid needs or solar availability. Flexibility means less investment is needed for slow-to-build grid infrastructure. We also need to focus on the efficient and smart operation of grids with smart electrified resources. In real life that looks like a solar power plant coupled with battery storage, or a smart charging station that charges a car when rooftop solar PV is producing abundantly.
While we need to ramp up battery and heat storage, we should ensure flexibility from the demand side too. We can follow the example of nuclear countries who employ flexibility from the demand side to manage inherently inflexible nuclear production. Since it's hard to switch nuclear on and off, consumers are encouraged to spread out their demand for electricity. Time-of-Use' tariffs make it cheaper to use nuclear electricity at night, incentivising electricity consumption at night, when demand is typically lower.
Discover the #LetsFlex campaign
What is Electrification?
Electrification means building an energy system on the principal of electricity - rather than combustion. So induction cookers rather than gas hobs, and vehicles that run on electricity, rather than diesel and other fossil fuels. Today, 24% of Europe's energy system is electrified. We should reach at least 60% electrification in the EU by 2050 to achieve climate neutrality.
Discover the Electrification Alliance
