European transmission system operators improve their cooperation to optimise electricity exchange capacity

European transmission system operators – Amprion (Germany), Elia (Belgium), REE (Spain), RTE (France), Swissgrid (Switzerland), TenneT (Netherlands and Germany), Terna (Italy) and TransnetBW (Germany) – improve their cooperation with a view to optimising electricity exchange capacity. 

To address increasing challenges in managing the security of power system while maximising the benefits for the European electricity market, transmission system operators (TSOs) and regional coordination centres (RSCs) further strengthen their collaboration, as well in their forecast studies as in the daily gestures, to optimize cross-border exchange capacity in each cross-border interconnection, according to system needs and conditions. These procedures are accelerated and coordinated by the RSCs (the main RSCs active in central Europe are currently CORESO and TSCNet).

Modelled on the process used in previous years to underpin security of electricity supply in Switzerland and Belgium, grid operators RTE, Elia, REE, Amprion, Swissgrid, Terna, TenneT and TransnetBW have established a joint action plan to ensure an efficient and harmonized usage of the power system resources. Cross border exchanges resulting from the optimisation of the interconnections, play a key role in ensuring the security supply in countries facing tension on their system. This strengthening cooperation will be particularly useful in case of tensions related to an insufficiency of production in a country.

The reinforced coordination will consist in the following main procedures:

• The European TSOs will be in constant contact through a newly-created catalogue of extraordinary measures: postponement of some maintenance works, end of some temporary safety margins in the new Flow Based process or the increase of the intraday capacity from Switzerland to France. The objective of this enhanced coordination is to optimise electricity exchange capacities between countries, so as to meet the needs of energy suppliers and limit the risk of power cuts when the supply-demand balance in different countries comes under strain at critical days.
• Maintenance works on the transmission lines most heavily impacting on cross-border exchanges have been rescheduled in an optimal way to boost electricity exchange capacity between countries and thus draw maximum benefit from the pooling of European generating facilities.   

The deployment of these new measures comes in addition to the existing mutual assistance arrangements between TSOs. The speed with which these supplementary measures are being set up is a further demonstration of the already implemented Regional Security Initiatives effectiveness and the commitment of European TSOs to strengthening cooperation and solidarity mechanisms, particularly during periods marked by challenges to the electricity system.