Smart, but is It Sustainable? The Importance of Reconciling Non-Technical Concerns in Grid-Development Policies

Abstract

Electricity grids in Europe are currently undergoing numerous changes. New grid development projects are proposed everywhere. This is partly caused by the Renewable Energy Sources (RES) directive of 2009 that specifies national targets that all countries must achieve by 2020. In Norway the on-shore renewable share is already high — around 60 percent, but as an EEA (European Economic Area) country Norway has agreed to increase this share to 67.5 percent. In Sweden the target is 49 percent, but the government has published the ambition to reach a renewable target beyond 50 percent by 2020. As a consequence, a number of efforts are being made to stimulate renewables. From 2012, a joint certificate market has been established between Norway and Sweden and, for 2020, a target has been set of 26.4 TWh of renewable electricity production. The political commitment to be submitted in accordance with the RES Directive targets will be shared equally between Norway and Sweden, with 13.2 TWh each, but given the market orientation of the policy scheme the actual investment will be located where investors find it most attractive. There are a lot of opinions and much public discussion surrounding renewables (Toke, 2005; Wüstenhagen et al., 2007), but without well-functioning electricity grids, electricity will never reach the market. In the last few years, investments in the upgrade and development of transmission lines have notably increased.