Energy infrastructure is key to achieving the EU’s energy and climate objectives at the lowest cost. Interconnected infrastructure helps guarantee security of energy supply, thus keeping prices in check, and is essential for integrating the increasing share of renewable energy sources into the EU’s energy system.
TEN-E rules
The revised TEN-E Regulation (EU/2022/869) entered into force in June 2022. It enhances the EU’s energy infrastructure policy and aligns it with the objectives of the European Green Deal, enabling investments to help achieve a climate-neutral energy mix by 2050.
The policy, first set in Regulation (EU) 347/2013, helps remove bottlenecks, improves market integration between EU countries and strengthens competitiveness. It brings together stakeholders in regional groups to identify and help implement Projects of Common and Mutual Interest (PCIs and PMIs) that contribute to the development of energy infrastructure in priority corridors and thematic areas. The revised regulation introduced new and updated energy infrastructure categories and a reconfiguration of priority corridors and areas.
In addition to offering an effective and cost-efficient approach to infrastructure planning, the regulation improves permitting procedures for energy infrastructure projects. It requires EU countries to ensure a streamlined permit-granting process for PCIs and PMIs within a timeframe of 3 and a half years. They are to receive the highest national priority status and be included in national network development plans.
The regulation also provides for regulatory assistance, rules and guidance for the cross-border allocation of costs and risk-related incentives, and provides access to financing opportunities from the Connecting Europe Facility.
Dedicated offshore grid planning provisions, introduced by the revised regulation, enable EU countries’ offshore renewable ambitions by supporting the scaling up of necessary offshore grid projects.
Natural (fossil) gas projects will no longer be granted PCI or PMI status, but support for hydrogen, electrolysers and local low-carbon and renewable gas projects will be included, as well as an obligation for all projects to meet mandatory sustainability criteria.
The preparatory work on the revision drew its evidence from a support study published in 2021 and an extensive consultation process seeking input from specialists, stakeholders and the public. It included a public consultation and 4 stakeholder webinars in 2020. In 2022, the Commission organised a series of webinars to present the new provisions.
Priority corridors and thematic areas
To ensure the most relevant and pressing infrastructure needs are considered when selecting the Projects of Common and Mutual Interest (PCIs and PMIs), the TEN-E policy builds on the strengths of regional cooperation and focuses on 11 priority geographical corridors covering
- electricity
- offshore grids
- hydrogen and electrolysers infrastructure development
and 3 priority thematic areas covering
- smart electricity grids
- smart gas grids
- CO2 networks
Documents
- Fact sheet: Achievements of the European energy infrastructure policy (December 2022)
Related links
- 8/12/2023 Connecting Europe Facility: Nearly €600 million for energy infrastructure contributing to decarbonisation and security of supply
- 16/05/2023 In focus: Clean energy transition and energy system integration
- 15/06/2021 Making the EU’s energy infrastructure fit for climate-neutrality
- 15/12/2020 Media package on the proposal to revise the EU rules on Trans-European Networks: Press release, Questions & Answers, Factsheet
- Study: Support to the evaluation of Regulation (EU) No 347/2013 on guidelines for trans-European energy infrastructure (January 2021)
- Study: Measuring the contribution of gas infrastructure projects to sustainability as defined in the TEN-E regulation (October 2020)
- Study: Evaluation of the TEN-E Regulation and assessing the impacts of alternative policy scenarios (February 2018)