Brussels, 20 March 2019 | Europex, the Association of European Energy Exchanges, welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback at this intermediate stage of the Commission study on “Potentials of sector coupling for decarbonisation – Assessing regulatory barriers in linking the gas and electricity sectors in the EU”.
A cross-sectoral approach, including electricity and gas both conventional and renewable, is necessary in order to develop more system flexibility, to free up unused cross-sectoral potential and to increase the coordination and competitiveness between the gas and electricity sectors. Developing and enhancing this potential is a pre-condition for successfully implementing the energy transition and for achieving the EU’s and global climate and energy targets. To this aim, sector coupling between gas and electricity but also sector integration beyond the two are important means to achieve the set goals in a market-driven and hence economically efficient and resource-optional way.
From an energy trading perspective, gas and electricity markets are already highly integrated today and trading houses constantly optimise their trading portfolios in line with the price signals they receive from the respective markets. Against this background, efficient internal wholesale electricity and gas markets must be enabled to deliver efficient price signals which will ultimately drive a closer integration of the gas and electricity sectors in Europe, especially with a view to integrate more renewable/decarbonised energy, i.e. renewable/decarbonised gas and renewable/decarbonised electricity. The ability of the gas sector to integrate renewable and decarbonised gases in a market-driven environment is therefore a key factor for the overall success of the EU’s future energy system. The same applies to the full market integration of renewable electricity.
Please see the full consultation response attached.
