Council of the

European Union
Brussels, 30 May 2024
(OR. en)

10459/24

ENER 259
COMPET 603
CLIMA 219
PROCIV 47
ENV 567

OUTCOME OF PROCEEDINGS
From: General Secretariat of the Council
On: 30 May 2024
To: Delegations
No. prev. doc.: 10244/24
Subject: Advancing Sustainable Electricity Grid Infrastructure
- Council conclusions (30 May 2024)

Delegations will find in the annex the Council conclusions on “Advancing Sustainable Electricity
Grid Infrastructure”, as approved by the Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council at its
meeting held on 30 May 2024.

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 ANNEX

Council conclusions on

“Advancing Sustainable Electricity Grid Infrastructure”

THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN UNION,

RECALLING:

- The European Green Deal and its objective for the EU to be climate neutral by 2050 in line
with the objectives of the Paris Agreement as endorsed by the European Council conclusions
of December 20191 and enshrined in the European Climate Law;

- The Versailles Declaration of 10 and 11 March 20222 highlighting energy security and
phasing out of the EU’s dependency on Russian fossil fuels as soon as possible, in particular
by completing and improving the interconnection of European gas and electricity networks
and fully integrating power grids throughout the EU;

- The European Council conclusions of April 20243 which underline the importance of
achieving a genuine energy Union which requires inter alia substantial deployment of and
investment in grids, storage and interconnections;

- The Commission’s Communication on REPowerEU on reducing dependency from Russian

fossil fuels, speeding up the energy transition and the further integration of the energy
market4;

1
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2019/12/12/european-council-conclusions-12-december-2019/
2 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/03/11/the-versailles-declaration-10-11032022/
3 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2024/04/18/european-council-conclusions-17-and-18-april-2024/
4 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2022:230:FIN

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- The “energy efficiency first” principle as anchored in the Energy Efficiency Directive;

- The possibility for Member States under the revised Renewable Energy Directive to simplify
permit-granting procedures for renewable energy projects and for the necessary
infrastructure projects, including through the creation of ‘Renewable acceleration areas’;

- The electricity interconnection targets as reflected in the Regulation on the Governance of

the Energy Union and Climate Action5;

- The Trans-European Networks for Energy (TEN-E), which contribute to the deployment of
cross-border infrastructure, through the selection of projects of common interest (PCIs) and
projects of mutual interest (PMIs) by proposing ways to simplify and accelerate permitting
and authorisation procedures and a suitable regulatory approach, and by providing access to
EU funding through the Connecting Europe Facility for Energy;

- The need to take into account the unique situation of less or not interconnected, peripheral,
outermost or isolated regions and Member States; as well as those located at the external
borders of the EU, neighbouring with countries that pose a direct threat to Members States
or European security, especially since Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine;

- The Commission’s Communication of November 2023 on an EU Action Plan for Grids,

which identifies challenges and proposes tailor-made actions and recommendations that
could be implemented within the following 18 months in order to deliver on the Union’s
2030 objectives6;

5
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2018/1999/oj
6
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2023:757:FIN

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- The “European Climate Risk Assessment” report by the European Environment Agency of
11 March 2024 and the Commission Communication of 12 March 2024 on “Managing
climate risks - protecting people and prosperity” emphasising the need to strengthen
Member States’ climate risk planning in the energy sector, given that climate change will
continue to exert significant stress on European energy infrastructure;

- The Directive on the resilience of critical entities7 and the Directive on measures for a high
common level of cybersecurity across the Union (NIS II) 8;

- The European Council conclusions of March 20249 which invited the Council to take work
forward, and the Commission together with the High Representative to propose actions to
strengthen preparedness and crisis response at EU level in an all-hazards and whole-of-
society approach, taking into account Member States’ responsibilities and competences, with
a view to a future preparedness strategy;

7
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2022/2557/oj
8
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2022/2555/oj
9
https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2024/03/22/european-council-conclusions-21-and-22-march-
2024/

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- The joint report by ACER and the European Environment Agency of October 2023 on
“Flexibility solutions to support a decarbonised and secure EU electricity system”10;

- The Ten-Year Network Development plan (TYNDP) 2024 and the recently published
Offshore Network Development Plans (ONDPs);

- The Commission’s Communication “Powering a climate-neutral economy: An EU Strategy

for Energy System Integration”11 and the Hydrogen and Gas Directive12 and Regulation13 that
includes a more coordinated and integrated planning between different energy carriers and the
Directive as regards the promotion of energy from renewable sources14;

- The Commission Communication of April 2024 on “The clean transition dialogues –

stocktaking / A strong European industry for a sustainable Europe”15;

- The Energy Infrastructure Forum that takes place every year in Copenhagen, and the
dedicated platform which will regularly monitor the progress and report at the annual meeting
of the Forum on delivery of the EU Grid Action Plan;

10 https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/flexibility-solutions-to-support
11 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=COM:2020:299:FIN
12
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:52021PC0803
13 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2021:804:FIN
14 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32023L2413
15 https://commission.europa.eu/publications/clean-transition-dialogues-stocktaking-strong-european-industry-sustainable-europe_en

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- The 2024 updated national energy and climate plans to be prepared by Member States and
focused on the need for clear objectives, measures and investments to reinforce electricity
grids both at distribution and transmission level as well as interconnections;

- The Commission’s Communication of February 2024 on the 2040 climate target and path to
climate neutrality by 205016 and the accompanying impact assessment, which refers inter
alia to the investment needed in grids owing to the increasing electrification of our
economies;

- The April 2024 report ‘Much more than a Market’ by Enrico Letta, which calls amongst
other things for more market integration and common action and the building of a robust
infrastructure network that covers the entire continent, facilitated through integrated
planning and EU funding;

- The following Council conclusions do not pre-empt any future MFF discussions.

16
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2024:63:FIN

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I. Towards a coordinated, interconnected and integrated European electricity network

1. ACKNOWLEDGES the crucial role of the interconnected, integrated and synchronised17

European electricity network in ensuring a secure system, the smooth functioning of the
internal market, the EU competitiveness and socio-economic development and the
achievement of the EU energy and climate goals; UNDERLINES in this regard the need to
maintain clear pricing signals within and across Member States; and to ensure an efficient
dispatch of assets;

2. HIGHLIGHTS that a fully integrated, interconnected, and synchronised European power

system can only be achieved if the EU’s electricity grid infrastructure is deployed and used as
effectively and efficiently as possible for exchanges of energy, including through flexibility
and other non-wire solutions, so that the overall system costs borne by households and
companies are mitigated as much as possible;

3. UNDERLINES that decisive steps still need to be taken to achieve a fully integrated,
interconnected, and synchronised European power system, with a view to further enhancing
security of supply, the resilience of the electricity system, as well as competitiveness and
decarbonisation; HIGHLIGHTS the need to take into account the specificities of not
interconnected Member States or not sufficiently connected, peripheral, outermost or isolated
regions; CALLS on the Commission to implement without delay the relevant actions of the
EU Grid Action Plan in close cooperation with all relevant actors;

17
The references to an interconnected, integrated and synchronised European power system refer to the Continental
Synchronous Area (formerly UTCE) and the final agreement on synchronisation with the Baltic System by February
2025. It complements and does not exclude the need for more interconnection and integration of separate
synchronous systems in the EU, namely Cyprus, Ireland, the Nordic System, and other islands in the European
Union.

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4. UNDERLINES the need for a holistic, long-term, coordinated, improved and integrated
electricity grid infrastructure planning at European level, covering both a 10 year and a 20-
year horizon, taking into account national and European decarbonisation targets, and
considers both offshore and onshore projects, including hybrid ones, whose progress needs to
be monitored so as to ensure a swift implementation of the EU’s climate and energy
objectives;

5. HIGHLIGHTS the value of combining a bottom-up coordination of national plans at regional

level with a European approach;

6. UNDERLINES the need to consider anticipatory grid investments to be able to avoid

bottlenecks in future connection requests for production and flexibility facilities as well as
demand, while balancing them against the risk of potential stranded assets;

7. HIGHLIGHTS the importance of ensuring holistic and integrated planning across all energy
carriers in view of future energy needs, applying the energy efficiency first principle, ensuring
coordination between transmission and distribution levels, and taking into account the
importance for the energy sector to be predominantly free of fossil fuels well ahead of 2050
and the importance of aiming to achieve a fully or predominantly decarbonised global power
system in the 2030s, and the ramp up of electricity infrastructure;

8. HIGHLIGHTS the importance of a stronger cooperation between Member States and an

integrated approach between all actors in the value chain in order to optimise spatial planning
and utilisation both on- and offshore; as well as the importance of coordinated maritime
spatial planning; ENCOURAGES making use of various related initiatives such as the Greater
North Sea Basin Initiative (GNSBI), the Helsinki Commission (HELCOM) and the Oslo-Paris
(OSPAR) Commission; HIGHLIGHTS the relevance of regional cooperation regarding grid
infrastructure planning and in the final updated national energy and climate plans;

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9. UNDERLINES that commitment and financing for grids, including from the EU level as well
as private financing, should be adequate and based on long-term planning, in line with the
objective to achieve net zero emissions by 2050;

10. REITERATES the need for a swift and rigorous implementation and enforcement of EU rules
so as to boost confidence in a fully integrated, interconnected and synchronised European
power system in order to achieve a genuine Energy Union, which is a key benefit underlying
investment in grids;

11. ENCOURAGES the Commission and Member States to build on initiatives to strengthen and
expand distribution grids so as to integrate decentralised renewable energy, flexible resources,
and to accommodate new demand linked to electrification as well as to ensure secure
electricity supply to consumers in a more coordinated way18 and support the dissemination of
best practices in distribution network planning e.g. by the EU DSO Entity;

12. HIGHLIGHTS the growing challenge of network congestion both at distribution and
transmission level which, in addition to grid expansion, may require an approach that ensures
sufficient adequacy as well as flexibility solutions;

18
GAP action: EU DSO Entity to support DSO grid planning by mapping the existence and characteristics of
distribution development plans (mid-2024)

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13. CALLS ON the Commission, in that regard:

(a) To strengthen a framework that provides a regulatory environment which meets the
requirements of the agreed decarbonisation ambitions, whilst facilitating anticipatory
investments;

(b) To develop an implementation agenda to support Member States, in close cooperation

with transmission and distribution system operators, in addressing the main barriers to
the efficient use and roll-out of electricity infrastructure, and in addressing network
congestion on the transmission and distribution levels, inter alia by network
development, streamlining of administrative planning and permitting procedures;

(c) To further strengthen the regional approach to electricity infrastructure planning and
combine it with an EU-wide approach including where appropriate with partner
countries, with a long-term perspective and coordination through the priority corridors,
four high-level groups19 and where relevant other regional cooperation formats;

(d) To consider the regional level also for the exchange of best practices among Member
States, regulatory authorities, and project promoters with the purpose of fostering
regional cooperation20 and grid integration;

(e) To come forward with a strengthened framework to increase transparency, traceability

and appropriate independent oversight for the whole transmission grid planning and
development process through strengthening the current governance structure by
providing for a European grid needs assessment and planning that complies with the EU
climate and energy targets and meets the decarbonisation objectives;

19
BEMIP, CESEC, NSEC, Southwest Europe
20
For example: the Pentalateral Energy Forum

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 (f) To ensure that the aforementioned independent oversight leads to the development of a
forecasting tool for grid needs and the linked investment needs on the path to climate
neutrality at EU level by 2050 in view of facilitating network development;

(g) To foster a flexible use of energy, to reinforce demand response and energy storage and
to launch a reflection on the grid tariffs framework;

14. CALLS ON the Commission and Member States to improve consistency between the
TYNDP, ONDP and the national and regional grid development plans (NDPs), as well as
consistency and complementarity with the national energy and climate plans;

15. CALLS ON the Commission to assess and identify gaps and develop measures if needed to
improve the governance framework at EU level concerning the planning, selection and
implementation of cross-border infrastructure, especially within the TYNDP process and
taking into account ACER’s opinions;

16. CALLS ON ENTSO-E to make use of the lessons learned and the stakeholder feedback in
their reporting on and future iterations of the TYNDP and CALLS on the European
Commission to consider proposing a longer time horizon for future network development
plans;

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17. CALLS ON the Member States:

(a) To ensure nature-inclusive design, so as to reconcile grid development acceleration and

generation, storage, flexibility and demand expansion with environmental and
biodiversity protection;

(b) To ensure a people-centred approach to the energy transition, closely involving citizens,
citizen energy communities and renewable energy communities when developing
energy infrastructure and revisiting grid connection and grid access capacity procedures
to ensure a level playing field with other market actors;

(c) To encourage and support TSOs and DSOs in strengthening their cooperation and in
developing new grid projects including smart grids wherever they are needed and in
reinforcing, maintaining, digitalising and modernising existing grids as well as using
flexibility, while taking into account the need to address the challenges related to
shifting from centralised to distributed and intermittent energy generation;

(d) To remain committed to open and integrated cross-border energy trade and
interdependence, thus enabling transit flows across Member States and partners and a
well-functioning internal electricity market which can be achieved by inter alia ensuring
the free flow of energy within and between Member States;

18. CALLS ON transmission system operators and distribution system operators, to address
network congestion both within the Member States on the transmission and distribution levels
as well as across the EU;

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II. Energy security and the resilience of energy infrastructure

19. ACKNOWLEDGES the importance of a robust, interconnected, independent, reliable and

secure European energy system, which contributes to Europe’s open strategic autonomy and
competitiveness;

20. WELCOMES the successful completion of the stress test of critical infrastructure in the
energy sector, based on common principles as per the Council Recommendation of December
2022 on a Union-wide coordinated approach to strengthen the resilience of critical
infrastructure21;

21. EMPHASISES that the energy system in Europe needs to be protected against the new threats
that it has been facing since 2022. This has led to a new understanding of the security and
resilience of the European energy system and of the need for a coordinated set of energy
security measures;

22. EMPHASISES the need for coherent and effective implementation of EU legislation
addressing security issues including cyber security risks;

23. EMPHASIZES that system stability is of key importance to ensure a safe and secure system
operation and CALLS ON Network Operators, NRAs or Member States to take the necessary
measures in line with internal market rules;

21
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32023H0120(01)

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24. CALLS ON the Commission to assist Member States and where relevant Energy Community
contracting parties, in improving security of electricity supply, also considering physical and
cyber security of energy infrastructure, and conduct a targeted review of the EU’s security of
electricity supply architecture over the longer term focusing on risk preparedness, whilst
taking into account Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, climate risks and various low-
probability high-impact scenarios as well as recent developments and lessons learned from the
energy crisis; RECOGNISES the specific security risks in the Member States located on the
external borders of the EU, neighbouring with countries that pose a direct threat to European
security.

25. CALLS ON Member States to strengthen cooperation between public authorities and
infrastructure entities, at the national, regional, European and international levels, in order to
protect and strengthen the resilience of infrastructure, inter alia, against hybrid threats,
including at offshore and subsea level;

26. CALLS ON the Commission to support Member States in applying the security-by-design
principle when developing energy infrastructure, including with regards to smart metering
systems and data communication infrastructure;

27. CALLS ON the Commission, the Member States and relevant partners to further improve the
exchange of relevant information concerning threats to and disruptive impacts on critical
energy infrastructure and value chains, including in terms of ownership;

28. INVITES the Commission and the European Environmental Agency to conduct regular
European Climate Risk Assessments;

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III. Bridging the gap in electricity grid infrastructure investment

29. ACKNOWLEDGES the unprecedented investment needs in electricity networks at both

transmission and distribution level in order to ensure a highly interconnected, integrated and
synchronised European power system to achieve the EU’s decarbonisation, competitiveness
and security of supply objectives;

30. NOTES the conclusions of Enrico Letta’s report on the internal market, and UNDERLINES
the role of the interconnected energy market for fostering efficient energy and climate
policies, and INVITES the Commission to reflect on the report’s recommendations related to
energy infrastructure;

31. CALLS ON the Commission to develop further guidance for Member States, TSOs and DSOs
in making the best use of existing EU funds for transmission and distribution electricity grids
as well as hybrid projects, while making the granting process for CEF funds more accessible
and streamlined;

32. INVITES the Commission to provide information about the actual investment needs in
relation to electricity grids compared to the funds earmarked for them and to look for ways to
increase overall investments for electricity grid infrastructure;

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33. STRESSES the need for a robust CEF in order to adequately respond to and support the
increased investment needs in onshore and offshore grid development projects;

34. CALLS ON the European Investment Bank to further strengthen financing and de-risking
initiatives and tools to support additional electricity grid expansion and modernisation;

35. NOTES that in order to develop offshore energy production in a cost-effective manner that
maximises overall benefits at European level, it becomes increasingly relevant in some sea-
basins to work beyond radial connections towards a hybrid meshed grid connected to different
Member States; NOTES that developing offshore infrastructure beyond radial connections
brings also different new challenges on coordination and cost or risk sharing between those
concerned; CALLS on the Commission to assess these challenges, the remaining gaps and
whether, beyond the implementation of the relevant provisions, it would be necessary to come
forward with further fair and proportionate proposals in this respect;

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36. LOOKS FORWARD TO the results of the Commission’s guidance on collaborative
investment frameworks for offshore and onshore grid projects, including hybrid projects;

37. CALLS ON the Commission and ENTSO-E to ensure that also non-economic elements, such
as national and regional security of supply transmission and system adequacy, redispatch,
flexibility, and the reduction of greenhouse gas and environmental impacts are included in the
guideline for Cost Benefit Analysis of Grid Development Projects;

38. CALLS ON the Commission to support Member States in developing a comprehensive

European approach to offshore bidding zones by providing guidance to Member States within
the existing regulatory framework, without prejudice to Member States' competences and
while consulting the stakeholders;

39. STRESSES the importance of cost-efficiency and a just transition so that additional
investments in electricity grid infrastructure avoid having a disproportionate impact on final
consumers or taxpayers;

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IV. Scale and speed of the development of electricity infrastructure

40. HIGHLIGHTS that the acceleration of permitting procedures of grids is of outmost

importance to scale-up and accelerate the development of electricity infrastructure, always
taking into account the impact on the environment and citizens early on and throughout the
process in a way that ensures a balance between the different elements;

41. IS CONCERNED about the prolonged lead time associated with current infrastructure
projects and STRONGLY ENCOURAGES concerted efforts of Member States to speed up
this process;

42. HIGHLIGHTS the problem of limited manufacturing capacities and service-providers which
leads to higher costs and prolonged lead times for grid projects and HIGHLIGHTS the need
for ambitious measures aiming at developing a strong European value chain for grids,
contributing to EU’s competitiveness and strategic autonomy while preserving an open
economy;

43. INVITES the Commission to explore possibilities to facilitate regional or EU-wide visibility
on procurement of grid components to send the right signals for local industry to ramp-up
manufacturing capacities; and provide, in cooperation with relevant actors, recommendations
on the role of harmonised functional tender specifications and standards can play in
accelerating and facilitating procurement procedures; and in this context assess the
opportunity to adapt the EU rules on public procurement;

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44. HIGHLIGHTS the role of standardisation in accelerating grid infrastructure development,
cutting costs and facilitating investments as well as the importance of the work of the
European Standardisation Organisations and in particular the established High-Level Forum
on European Standardisation and CALLS FOR an acceleration of the on-going work
regarding standards for electricity infrastructure while taking into account the role of
innovation in this respect;

45. HIGHLIGHTS, for the medium to long term, the need for smart standardisation to speed up
production processes, minimise supply chain disturbances and increase their efficiency while
ensuring the availability of grid components in Europe; and ENCOURAGES the High-Level
Forum on European Standardisation to come forward with recommendations and
standardisation priorities;

46. EMPHASISES, in the short term, the need for common practices among and within Member
States, in order to make procedures more compatible and interoperable across industries,
including for permits and procurement;

47. HIGHLIGHTS the participation of prosumers in the EU electricity market and CALLS ON
the Commission to assess the interoperability needs and the opportunity for standardisation of
smart appliances at household level;

48. CALLS ON ENTSO-E and the EU DSO Entity to enhance collaboration with technology
providers to develop common technology specifications by the end of 2024 in the framework
of a workshop agreement by the European Standardisation Organisations to improve visibility
of required and planned new grid projects, as well as to disseminate best practices at EU level
on permit granting procedures;

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49. CALLS ON ENTSO-E and the EU DSO Entity to assess the added value of functional tender
designs and to issue, non-binding guidelines to its members based on this assessment;

50. EMPHASISES the importance of generating local benefits in order to increase public
acceptance of electricity grids e.g. by including an environmental design; CALLS ON
Member States, in that regard, to duly implement the provisions on renewable energy
communities and the citizen energy communities and to join and implement the Pact for
Engagement so as to ensure early and regular information and public participation in grid
development projects as well as the engagement of local entities and territories;

51. CALLS FOR the speeding up of procedures in the permit-granting process, the streamlining
of tendering, procurement processes, the enhancement of administrative capacity and the
digitalisation of the relevant processes;

52. CALLS ON the Commission to assess and identify measures to accelerate relevant permitting
procedures for electricity grid infrastructure paying attention to the coherence of the
framework for energy, nature and environment;

53. EMPHASISES the importance of the availability of an adequately skilled labour force;

54. ENCOURAGES public administrations to make data for environmental assessment available
in order to accelerate and facilitate permitting procedures.

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