07 September 2024
The distribution grid plays a key role in enabling the energy transition. Investments are therefore necessary to enable the grid to manage the changing structure of the electricity system and cope with climate change. This is what emerges from the Study ‘The role of electricity distribution for a safe energy transition’, carried out by TEHA in collaboration with Enel and presented during the 50th edition of the Forum ‘Intelligence on the World, Europe and Italy’ by The European House - Ambrosetti, at a press conference attended by Lorenzo Tavazzi, Senior Partner and Board Member of The European House - Ambrosetti and TEHA Group; Gianni Vittorio Armani, Director of Enel Grids and Innovability at Enel; Guido Bortoni, President of CESI, former Head of the Energy Department of the Italian Government and former President of ARERA.
‘In the light of the changes taking place in the electricity system and those required to achieve decarbonisation, the consolidation and development of the distribution network as an essential means to enable this evolution is indeed at the heart of the current energy debate. In order to support this important new phase of development of the distribution grid through capital investment and innovation, it is necessary to ensure a continuity structure that allows for financial stability and sustainable management for distribution grid operators,’ commented Gianni Vittorio Armani, Director of Enel Grids and Innovability at Enel.
‘The progressive increase in electricity generated from renewable sources and the greater electrification of final consumption require the electricity distribution network to be adequate and enable a smooth transition,’ commented Lorenzo Tavazzi, Senior Partner and Board Member of The European House - Ambrosetti and TEHA Group. ‘The evolution of the electricity system and the role of distribution call for new important investments in the network to ensure the continuity of performance: in Italy, about 6 billion Euro of investments per year will be planned over the next 10 years, which can trigger significant direct, indirect and induced impacts in the country's economy.’
In Italy, the strategic nature of the electric grid is confirmed by its presence in the list of strategic infrastructures defined by Golden Power, in a context where more than 80% of the electricity consumed in Italy is supplied by the distribution network. Moreover, the electricity distribution network is an essential service not only for maintaining vital functions of the society (serving more than 30 million households), but also and above all for economic activities, with 7 million commercial and industrial users connected.
More specifically, in Italy the electricity distribution network plays a key role in enabling the energy transition, both because of the growing connection of plants (more than 70% of the additional renewable capacity to be installed by 2030 in Italy will in fact be connected to the distribution network) and because of the increasingly active role of end consumers in the electricity system, who become prosumers and promoters of innovative ‘activities’.
These two dynamics - distributed generation and the increasingly active role of end consumers - highlight the strategic nature of infrastructure: in 2023, more than 370,000 connections were created in Italy, 7 times the number recorded 10 years ago, reflecting the importance of decentralised electricity generation, with relatively smaller power generation plants that are closer to end consumers.
Distribution must therefore be adapted to these new requirements dictated by the changing structure of the electricity system and ongoing climate change.