While Brussels finalises the EU Grid Package, three areas demand immediate action

The document outlines three priority areas for the upcoming EU Grid Package to resolve electricity grid bottlenecks in Europe: coordinating planning across borders and time horizons, accelerating permitting processes, and modernising existing infrastructure using grid-enhancing technologies. It highlights that Europe requires approximately half a trillion euros in grid investments by 2030 and notes that over 40% of distribution grids are over 40 years old. The text emphasizes that current fragmented planning and permitting delays, which account for about 25% of total investment time, hinder the integration of renewable capacity. It proposes extending planning horizons from 10 to 20 years and implementing 'one-stop shops' for permitting to improve efficiency. Additionally, it suggests that grid-enhancing technologies could increase network capacity by 20-40%.

• Europe requires approximately 500 billion euros in grid investments by 2030, according to the European Commission, to support climate ambitions, industrial competitiveness, and energy affordability.
• The European electricity grid is aging, with more than 40% of distribution grids being over 40 years old and nearing the end of their useful life, while permitting processes currently account for roughly 25% of the total time required for grid investment.
• Current grid planning is fragmented geographically and temporally, with national plans misaligned with the EU's Ten-Year Network Development Plan (TYNDP) and planning horizons of 10 years that are too short to capture long-term infrastructure synergies for 2050 goals.
• The adoption of grid-enhancing technologies—such as advanced conductors, power flow controls, and dynamic line ratings—could increase existing network capacity by 20% to 40% and typically require less permitting time than new greenfield projects.

APA

Romm, L., & Kösters, M. (2025). While Brussels finalises the EU Grid Package, three areas demand immediate action. Clean Air Task Force. https://www.catf.us/2025/11/while-brussels-finalises-eu-grid-package-three-areas-demand-immediate-action/

Chicago

Romm, Lea, and Marie Kösters. While Brussels finalises the EU Grid Package, three areas demand immediate action. Clean Air Task Force, 2025. https://www.catf.us/2025/11/while-brussels-finalises-eu-grid-package-three-areas-demand-immediate-action/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Romm |first1=Lea |last2=Kösters |first2=Marie |title=While Brussels finalises the EU Grid Package, three areas demand immediate action |publisher=Clean Air Task Force |date=20 November 2025 |url=https://www.catf.us/2025/11/while-brussels-finalises-eu-grid-package-three-areas-demand-immediate-action/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{romm2025while, author = {Romm, Lea and Kösters, Marie}, title = {{While Brussels finalises the EU Grid Package, three areas demand immediate action}}, publisher = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2025}, month = nov, url = {https://www.catf.us/2025/11/while-brussels-finalises-eu-grid-package-three-areas-demand-immediate-action/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }