Increasing climate-related hazards demand a more resilient system that can withstand, adapt, and quickly recover from such shocks. Simultaneously, the drive towards a cleaner energy system, a rapid rise in renewables, and increased sector integration have led to a less stable system that is more volatile than before and more vulnerable to shocks. This development calls for more and better energy-network system services. EU energy legislation addresses specific sides of resilience. Grid planning involves specific resilience assessment requirements for regulators as part of the network development plans. However, resilience must be better integrated and defined as a mandatory assessment requirement. Some national regulatory authorities have already incorporated resilience in their frameworks, but we argue that a targeted regulatory and legislative approach at the EU level is also needed. The benefits of resilience investments must be measured and monetised to be adequately incentivised and included in CBA analyses. In particular, due to the increased coupling between the gas and electricity sectors, new resilience metrics that reflect the growing interdependence and feedback between the two sectors are needed. We examine several approaches to measuring resilience and suggest an approach to monetisation.
Tag: Europe
Fossil Natural Gas Exit – A New Narrative for the European Energy Transformation Towards Decarbonization
This paper discusses the potential role of fossil natural gas in the process of the energy transformation in Europe on its way to decarbonization. Mainstream conventional wisdom has it that natural gas, perhaps in combination with other gases, should maintain an important role in the energy mix, first, as a “bridge fuel”, and then through…
Resource Adequacy with Increasing Shares of Wind and Solar Power: A Comparison of European and U.S. Electricity Market Designs
We raise the question if improvements to current energy-only markets are sufficient to maintain resource adequacy in electricity markets or whether the rapid increase in wind and solar power gives stronger arguments for additional capacity mechanisms. A comparative analysis between Europe and the United States reveals some fundamental differences, but also many similarities in electricity…
Economics and Politics of Shale Gas in Europe
In the wake of the dramatic growth in shale gas production in the United States, interest in shale gas exploration in Europe has been driven primarily by concerns over industrial competitiveness and energy security. A number of studies have been carried out to understand the success factors underpinning the US shale gas revolution and how…
Modelling Net Zero and Sector Coupling: Lessons for European Policy Makers
This paper seeks to discuss some of the policy implications which arise from the modelling of Net Zero GHG emissions in 2050 within a sector coupling approach. We draw on a major study of the EU-UK energy system in 2050 produced by the Centre for Regulation in Europe (Chyong et al. 2021), which involved stakeholders…