16/12/2025 (Agence Europe) – On Monday 15 December, the Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER) amended the methodology for the regional acquisition of balancing capacity, following the proposal received by the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) last September. This methodology enables regional coordination centres (RCCs) to assess the optimal use of ‘voluntary balancing bids’ across borders. The revision involves updating the reliability parameters used by the RCCs to assess the availability of voluntary balancing bids and inter-zone capacity. It also allows RCCs and TSOs (transmission system operators) to define the geographical area in which their evaluation of the use of voluntary balancing bids will be carried out. By 19 January 2026, the RCCs will have to assess and make recommendations on optimising the use of voluntary balancing bids. (PLD)