20 IMPACT: Going beyond the numbers In Europe, grid hardening has become a top priority, as the importance of a stable and secure energy supply to power its economies has also come into sharper focus as the war in Ukraine grinds on. The European Union has implemented several initiatives to strengthen the continent's electricity infrastructure, including the European Commission's Clean Energy Package, which aims to modernize and secure the EU's electricity grids. About € 584 billion of investment in the electricity grid will be required, between 2020 and 2030, in particular in the distribution grid, according to an EU action plan to digitalize the energy grid released in October 2022. A substantial part of these investments will need to be in digitalization, the plan said. One of the main strategies for grid hardening in Europe is the deployment of advanced technology such as smart grids, energy storage systems, and digital control systems. Smart grids use advanced sensors, communication networks, and control systems to optimize the flow of electricity and prevent blackouts. Energy storage systems, such as batteries, can store excess energy during periods of low demand and release it during peak demand, thus reducing stress on the grid. Digital control systems use advanced algorithms and machine learning to monitor the grid's performance and predict potential failures. Grid hardening in the EU and US is underway, because it is more crucial than ever. But energy project developers, particularly in the U.S. ,are facing several hindrances – often called “bottlenecks” -- when it comes to securing permits, making connections to the network, and ensuring sufficient supply lines are available. At the end of 2022, more than 10,200 projects were seeking grid interconnection across the U.S., covering over 1,350 GW of generation and an estimated 680 GW of storage, according to the research center Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). Solar energy accounted for more than 70 percent of all active generator capacity in the bottlenecks, though substantial wind and gas capacity is also in development, LBNL said the bottlenecks are widespread across the U.S. but some states stand out, with Texas having 13% of proposed solar, storage, and gas, and 7% of proposed wind, New York having 23% of all proposed wind (mostly offshore), and California having 14% of proposed storage. Plans to construct new electricity infrastructure often have to contend with local opposition. Objections are often related to environmental arguments such as the need to preserve farmland and rural areas, concerns about the scenic impact on the landscape and effects on local wildlife. DELAYS AND HURDLES GRID HARDENING IN THE EU To speed up grid hardening in Europe, the EU in November 2022 agreed to new temporary regulations recognizing renewable projects as “an overriding public interest.” It also agreed to limit the environmental impact assessment.
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