Fsr Energy & Climate

Nicolò Rossetto (FSR) and Thierry Lepercq (Engie) discuss the way Engie, a major European energy company, is dealing with the series of disruptions that are affecting the energy business, both electricity and gas. Engie is navigating through the changes in Europe and beyond, and has decided to sell or close some of its less profitable assets in power generation. At the same time, Engie is looking towards the future by investing in renewables. According to Mr Lepercq the future is the exploitation of solar energy in prime locations around the world, like Chile or Australia, to produce hydrogen and then deliver it to Europe at a final cost that is in line with that of liquefied natural gas. This could possibly contribute to the decarbonisation of the gas sector, safeguarding the European gas grid form becoming a stranded asset. Hydrogen could then be used for district heating and power generation, solving the issue of the intermittency and seasonality of most renewables. A 100% renewable future would become muc

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. In this podcast, Swetha Bhagwat (FSR) interviews Ifey Ikeonu, a successful energy policy and regulation consultant with over 25 years of experience. Ms Ikeonu discusses her role in various power sector reform programmes, highlighting the main pioneering efforts put in place to establish the regulatory framework for the electricity market of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). Prior to her current position, she helped found the Nigerian Energy Regulatory Commission and was one of the first commissioners for ECOWAS. The ECOWAS region is low on access to energy but it is high on innovation and motivation. In this podcast Ifey discusses her career path and explains the importance of innovation and regulatory framework in the energy sector in order to attract investment to help build the sector. Later in the

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Diane X. Burman serves as a Commissioner of the New York State Public Service Commission, which regulates the state’s electric, gas, steam, telecommunications, and water utilities. The Commission focuses on the provision of safe, reliable and affordable services across all sectors, working with both industry and consumers to ensure that regulations are effective, flexible and fluid to adapt to the changes and challenges faced by those sectors. In this podcast, Diane and Swetha discuss the ways women from different professional, economic and cultural backgrounds find innovative ways to work towards greater access to energy. According to Diane, women working in energy, although still underrepresented, are changing the energy sector with their versatility, wealth of diverse knowledge and solution-driven mindsets. She explains tha

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Annegret Groebel is Vice-President at CEER and Head of the International Relations Department at BNetzA, Germany’s multisector regulatory authority. In this podcast, she sheds light on BNetzA’s approach and discusses the main similarities and differences when it comes to a ‘multisector regulation’. Network industries under the supervision of BNetzA share similar cost structures and face the problem of recovering sunk costs. The challenge for regulators is then to assess those costs and ensure an adequate structure and level of the network tariff paid by network users. However, regulators like BNetzA play a role also in ensuring the integrity and transparency of the wholesale markets, as mandated in the EU by REMIT. As a concluding remark, Ms Groebel stresses the importance of looking at the regulatory experience of other co

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Christina Espinosa is founder and CEO of GenteGas, a social enterprise in Guatemala, helping local households reducing the entry costs of modern and clean gas stoves and fuels. By easing access to clean cooking facilities and LPG, fostering education and raising public awareness, GenteGas aims to eradicate families’ exposure to indoor air pollution and the related health problems. In this podcast, Christina explains her leading motivations in founding GenteGas; she also provides an interesting analysis of the local context and the main challenges that led to the development of an ecosystem approach within GenteGas. As a concluding remark, Ms Espinosa highlights the importance of educating and informing households and communities: a full understanding of the energy sources and technologies available is essential for the adop

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Patricia de Suzzoni is currently the Advisor to the President at CRE, the French regulatory authority. As Patricia has filled so many different roles in the energy and telecom sectors, we asked her about the main challenges, as well as opportunities, she faced while transitioning from industry to the public sector. After giving some insight on her experiences, Patricia discusses the similarities between the regulation of energy and the regulation of telecoms and highlights the lessons that can be learned, given that the two sectors are increasingly facing the same challenges. (e.g. data privacy and cybersecurity) Check out more podcasts like this one and learn more about the Lights on Women Initiative here: medium.com/lights-on-women/

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Marie-Pierre Fauconnier is President of the Board of Directors at CREG and Vice President of CEER. During the interview with Swetha Bhagwat (FSR), her first remark highlighted how the role of women has changed in the energy sector: 25 years ago, they were very few, while today, although still a clear minority, they are gaining more and more space and responsibilities. According to Ms. Fauconnier, the two biggest challenges the energy sector will be facing in the upcoming future are the integration of RES in the energy mix and the impact of digitalisation and new technologies. These “novelties” generate both opportunities and threats. It is crucial for energy regulators to ensure that ‘every customer is onboard’ so that no one is left behind. Digitalisation and the speedy adoption of fast-changing technologies are challenging

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event Bevan Flansburg is the Deputy Director in the International Department at the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). In this podcast, Bevan and Swetha start off by discussing sustainable energy regulation on a global level and economic and clean energy factors regulators must take into consideration to create sound regulation. Bevan sheds light on the capacity building programs she and her team work on in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and the Middle East as well as the regional partnerships which she has designed throughout her career, including the West Africa Regional Regulatory Partnership and the East Africa Regional Regulatory Partnership. Tapping into the knowledge of public utility regulators across the United States, those programmes and partnerships use peer to peer engagements t

In the framework of the 7th World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER), ICER Women in Energy and FSR teamed up to ‘give a voice’ to women professionals actively contributing to the event. Aida Sitdikova is EBRD Director for Energy and Natural Resources for Russia, Caucasus and Central Asia. In this podcast, Aida explains the ‘energy transition’ in the Eurasian and Caucasus context. EBRD is committed to supporting a regional shift towards affordable, secure, reliable and sustainable energy despite the specific geopolitical context and constraints. However, fossil fuels are still largely used, have a strong political impact and represent large employment sectors for local populations. Therefore, transition in these countries will probably first move from coal to gas and only at a later stage to renewables. An example of this slow but steady transition is Kazakhstan. Financing the transition is also challenging: fossil fuels’ strong legacy, lack of infrastructure, affordability and poor education are only a few o

Nicolò Rossetto (FSR) and Apostolos Gkizas (Greek Regulatory Authority for Energy, RAE) discuss the most recent developments in the Greek renewable energy sector. Greece is not yet on track to achieve its 2020 target for renewables, but decarbonization of electricity generation is moving forward. RAE plays a decisive role in the field of electric renewables: from the licencing of RES plants to the auctioning of support schemes for new projects, and from the monitoring of projects’ implementation to the definition of electricity tariffs for cost recovery. The successful implementation of the auctions planned up to 2020 and the issue of saturated networks in some parts of the country are important challenges for RAE, which also has to cope with a significant understaffing due to recently imposed budget cuts.

At the Energy Infrastructure Forum in Copenhagen, Pradyumna Bhagwat (FSR) spoke to Rosemary Steen (Director External Affairs - Eirgrid) about her thoughts on the topic digitization of the grids. Digitization would be an enabler for consumer participation but some cyber security threats do exist as was discussed at the Forum. Another valuable insight from the forum was the different experiences of member states with smart meters. visit the Florence School of Regulation website: fsr.eui.eu

At the sidelines of the State of the Union 2018, Jean-Michel Glachant (Director FSR) and Catia Bastioli (Chairwoman Terna) discuss the new industrial plan of Terna, the Italian TSO for electricity. The plan foresees a 5.3 billion euro of investment in the 2018-2022 period and is going to focus on sustainability and territories. Ms Bastioli highlights the importance of a global vision while keeping the “roots” in the local communities and territories. Undeniably, the major obstacle to the energy transition is not the lack of technologies but the limited ability so far to involve regions and communities actively in the transition. Industrial players and institutions must be transparent, include people and propose solutions that create trust and lead to the regeneration of territories and communities. This move is indispensable to reconcile the needs of the economy and climate with the needs and aspiration of society. Without it, the acceptability and the speed of the energy transition cannot be given for gr

Nicolò Rossetto (FSR) and Asta Sihvonen-Punkka (Fingrid) exchange views about the digitalisation of the energy sector. The massive deployment of renewables and advancements in the ICT field are making a deeper digitalisation of the energy sector both possible and increasingly necessary. As a result, it is possible to detect a greater parallel with the telecom sector, especially in terms of cybersecurity challenges. European energy companies are beginning to understand the importance of cybersecurity and are catching up quickly. A regulatory framework is being built, but there is still a lot of work to do to ensure that companies receive the right incentives and properly address the issue of cybersecurity. Sharing experiences and best practices among companies and regulators is vital in this respect.

Nicolò Rossetto (FSR) and Thomas Pearce (NARUC) discuss the issue of cybersecurity in the energy sector. Cybersecurity is attracting growing interest from companies and regulators around the world, largely because the associated costs are increasing and becoming more visible. Special attention from the regulators is then necessary. In the US, the 50 state jurisdictions plus the District of Columbia are putting in place different approaches, while sharing the same goal of enhanced cybersecurity protection for the utility systems they regulate. The differences in their approach often stem from each state's varying regulatory framework: some have vertically integrated utilities, while others introduced unbundling and competition. Furthermore, some states have made more progress, while others are still defining their policy and looking for the best practices around the country. Indeed, both Europe and the US could learn from each other by sharing early experiences and reflections on an issue that is becoming incr

In this podcast, Maria Olczak (FSR) interviews Adina Crisan-Revol (Team Leader at DG ENER, UNIT B1) to discuss the Projects of Common Interests (PCI). Mrs Crisan-Revol explains what the PCI is, and the benefits it brings to the EU energy market and EU consumers. Since 2013, the PCI list is updated every 2 years. The third list has been proposed by the European Commission in November 2017 and has been already adopted by the Council and the European Parliament. Mrs Crisan-Revol addresses the key changes recently introduced by the European Commission in order to ensure that the third PCI list better aligned with the EU longer-term targets. Recorded at the Specialised Training on the Regulation of Gas Markets in Florence, 21 March 2018.

At the margins of the World Forum on Energy Regulation (WFER) in Cancun, Jean-Michel Glachant (Florence School of Regulation) interviews Marcelino Madrigal from the Comisión Reguladora de Energía (CRE) about the recent reform of Mexico's energy system. The reform is all-encompassing, covering oil, natural gas and electricity at the same time; it is far-reaching too, because it introduces competition and freedom of choice for consumers. The power sector, for instance, has been unbundled and long-term contracts for the purchase of electricity from renewable sources have been successfully auctioned. Within this major reform, CRE is performing several important tasks, like defining transmission and distribution tariffs and promoting a competitive retail market, where consumers are empowered. In this transition, Europe is seen as a reference case, in both positive and in negative ways, which emerging countries have to take into consideration, while not forgetting the significant differences in their social and eco

During the Smartnet Advisory meeting held in Glasgow in January 2018, we had the chance to interview Steven Atkins from the Scottish & Southern Electricity Networks and exchange ideas on the key aspects and links between our project and the SSEN initiatives in the same field. For more information on the SmartNet Project: http://smartnet-project.eu/

Given its current carbon intensity, the power industry is particularly sensitive to the reform of the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS). Eurelectric, the association representing many of the big players in electricity generation, has a broadly positive view on the reform that has been recently approved by the Council and the European Parliament. Nevertheless, it is interesting to hear that for the largest power producers a price on carbon is not the only important factor that will steer the industry towards full decarbonisation by the middle of the century. Many other issues must be addressed, and the uncertainty that investors are currently facing is particularly important. Investment signals based on long-term electricity purchase agreements could become one of the key pillars of a new market design. Indeed, long-term contracts can efficiently complement short-term flexibility markets and ensure security of supply, decarbonisation and competitiveness for the power sector.

These are exciting times in the role of energy, the way people produce and consume is changing in front of our eyes…” and that’s where Lynne Mc Donald (UK Power Networks), who joined the Advisory Board of the SmartNet Project in Glasgow, sees the benefit of the SmartNet project. The SmartNet project arises from the need to find answers and propose new practical solutions to the increasing integration of Renewable Energy Sources in the existing electricity transmission network. The subsequent technological (r)evolution is not only affecting the structure of the electricity markets, but also the interactions between TSOs and DSOs. Learn more on the project here: http://smartnet-project.eu

What lessons from the SmartNet Project? Interviews with the stakeholders #1: Andrew Burgess (CEER, OFGEM) ‘What is interesting of the SmartNet project is that it’s looking at difficult issues in detail and it’s trialling them to see what works’ Highlights from the SmartNet Project Advisory Board (Glasgow - February 2018) The EU Horizon2020 funded SmartNet project arises from the need to find answers and propose new practical solutions to the increasing integration of Renewable Energy Sources in the existing electricity transmission network. http://smartnet-project.eu/