The European Commission is expected to present, on Tuesday 15 December, its proposal for a revision of the EU regulation (347/2013) on trans-European energy networks (TEN-E) to provide the EU with a new framework for planning cross-border energy infrastructure. This proposal, a draft version of which was obtained by EUROPE, aims specifically to further adapt the TEN-E Regulation to expected changes in the European energy system.
Article 1 of this preliminary draft thus states that the revised TEN-E Regulation sets out guidelines for the selection and development of priority trans-European energy infrastructure projects, “in line with the EU’s 2030 and 2050 climate and energy targets and the climate neutrality objective”. Such a reference to the EU’s new climate ambitions does not appear in the current version of the Regulation.
Alignment with climate objectives
In order to align the Regulation with the new EU climate objectives, the Commission plans to amend the project categories in the Regulation.
According to the preliminary draft, the category relating to projects for oil transport will thus be removed. This means that these projects will no longer be able to receive ‘Projects of Common Interest’ (PCI) status, which allows them to become eligible for European financial support under the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).
Stressing that “natural gas infrastructure no longer needs support through the TEN-E policy”, the Commission also plans to remove the category for natural gas projects.
Nevertheless, gas would not be totally excluded from the regulation, as the institution is proposing a new category for smart gas network projects. In order to become PCIs, these projects will, inter alia, have to “contribute significantly to sustainability by enabling and facilitating the integration of renewable and low-carbon gases, such as biomethane or renewable hydrogen, into the gas distribution and transport networks”, says the draft.
In addition, the document introduces two more new categories: one for hydrogen projects and the other for electrolysers, specifying that they are expected to make a significant contribution to sustainability, particularly by enhancing the deployment of renewable hydrogen.
With regard to hydrogen, the text underlines the need for infrastructure for cross-border hydrogen transport and trade in Europe. According to the Commission, “this infrastructure is expected to consist largely of assets converted from natural gas, complemented by new assets dedicated to hydrogen”.
The new TEN-E framework is therefore expected to include “new and repurposed hydrogen transport and storage infrastructure as well as electrolyser facilities”, says the draft, with the aim of creating a “hydrogen backbone” for the EU.
Finally, the preliminary draft does not include a specific category for renewable energies.
Governance
With regard to the governance of infrastructure planning, the Commission also proposes changes, but no major revision.
While the process has been regularly criticised for the leading role played by ENTSOE and ENTSOG (two organisations representing the transmission system operators for electricity and gas respectively), the document foresees a strengthened role for the Commission and for the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER).
Specifically, the Commission would be responsible for developing framework guidelines to define and guide ENTSOE and ENTSOG in the development of their common scenarios to be used for the Union-wide 10-year network development plans (TYNDPs), which serve as a basis for the selection of PCIs.
The Agency is expected to publish these framework guidelines by 31 July 2023 (and update them regularly), after having carried out a broad consultation process involving the Commission and organisations representing all relevant stakeholders, including ENTSOE and ENTSOG, European distribution system operators (DSOs), and hydrogen stakeholders.
In addition, ACER will apparently be responsible for approving incremental improvements to the cost-benefit methodologies developed by ENTSOE and ENTSOG.
See the preliminary draft: https://bit.ly/3oxBUML and its appendices: https://bit.ly/37JesVX (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)