The European Commission has last week launched a public consultation on digitalizing the energy sector as part of the preparation of a Commission Action Plan on the Digitalization of the energy system, due for publication in the first semester of 2022. The EC already received over 40 comments from companies and business associations. Here are some of the proposals from GIE, the association of the European gas infrastructure operators of gas transmission networks, storage, and LNG terminals, representing 70 operators from 26 European countries.

Digitalization is a key element in the foreseen complex hybrid energy system needed to reach the ambitious Green Deal objectives, according to GIE. This will require instant reactions on balancing, accommodating, coordinated planning and operation into delivering more diversified energy sources. GIE would encourage and support three developments streams:

• Stable and reliable energy supply – because this is the basic need for continuity
• New technology – because for managing future complexity, innovative solutions are needed
• Market developments – for coping with external influences, EC, regulators, environmental, etc

Cooperation is the key, and this means data and expertise exchange, especially cross-operational data exchange: TSO-TSO, TSO-DSO, TSO-SSO etc. “The focus should not lie only on electricity but also use the opportunity to include other energy vectors. The integration between energy systems through e.g. hydrogen increases the complexity of market dynamics, clearly supporting a case for digitalization approach also in the domain of molecules”, writes GIE. There are three key priorities here: flexibility for the electricity network which will include other energy vectors and systems like gas and heating, regulation on data classification as confidential / state secret and standardization.

GIE urges the EC to take further steps towards data collection and data standardization in European Data Spaces and Governance. For this, legislation updates are needed to provide the incentives and/or the mechanisms to encourage the development of secured European Data Centers, and the set-up of specialized Digital Innovation Hubs on Artificial Intelligence. Of course, all of the digital developments should be subsequent and compliant to Cyber Security governance.

Concerning the market developments, GIE warns of the need for an approach towards cultivating the right digital competencies. „Already today we already see a scarcity in competencies in the domains of AI, big data etc., but also more generic ICT domains. A further push towards digitalization will put even more stress on these competencies and resources”, writes GIE.

IT sector should be a driver for investment in renewables, considers the association, and it also needs to be energy efficient: e.g. Data Centers to be placed where heat has value and is not wasted.