Recently, Eurelectric addressed the growing need for regulation and investment into weather resilient power systems. The report draws attention to the increasing likelihood of extreme weather events across Europe due to climate change. The key messages of the report include:
- With the current trend of +1.5°C warming by 2030, climate adaptation and mitigation must be considered in partnership.
- Extreme weather has cost Europe €145bn in economic loss in past decade, and the time for investing in the resilience of our power system us now. Waiting will only become more expensive.
- All generation and distribution assets are – and will be – exposed to the growing effects of climate change. Power System operators and utilities have a major role to ensure that their assets are ready for this new era of extreme weather.
- But we cannot act alone; the regulatory framework for system operators, taxonomy screening criteria for private investments and resilience funding must encourage power system climate adaptation. We also need to take a holistic view to ensure stronger coordination and continuous communication between all stakeholders.
As we develop our supply and increase renewable generation, to meet the targets set out in the Climate Action Plan, we also need to ensure that we are upgrading power system services. EAI collaborates with its members on steering policy and regulation to give appropriate signals for investment in this area.