Following the Greek and Polish pilot cases, Enefirst Plus now releases its Italian and Croatian cases.
The goal of these pilot cases is to effectively consider and implement demand-side resources as alternatives to supply-side infrastructures in energy system planning, decision process about energy related investments or design of incentives.
The objectives of the first Italian pilot case were to assess to what extent the EE1st principle would already be implemented in SECAPs (Sustainable Energy & Climate Action Plans), and how the EE1st principle could be better integrated in the processes and practices for preparing a SECAP.
A SECAP is a local planning document, voluntarily signed by a municipality, or group of municipalities, committing to concrete mitigation and adaptation actions to achieve climate objectives by 2030 and/or 2050, under the framework of the Covenant of Mayors launched by the European Commission in 2008.
The Italian pilot case first reviewed a selection of well-documented SECAPs to analyse the criteria used for selecting and prioritizing measures, the emphasis placed on energy efficiency, and the level of ambition of the targets.
Then a sample of measures was analysed in more details, using a multi-dimensional evaluation. This multi-dimensional analysis (MDA) methodology was tested with the municipality of Naples that was preparing the revision of their SECAP. This also involved other stakeholders taking part in the SECAP process (e.g. energy utilities, University of Naples Federico II).
Key points for an effective SECAP process in line with EE1st include, among others, clarifying the decision process to select the actions, stakeholder engagement and coordination, and structuring data collection and management.
The main aim of the Croatian pilot case was the integration of the EE1st (Energy Efficiency First) principle into transmission system planning and the related cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of transmission grid investment projects.
The Croatian pilot case facilitated compliance with the provisions of Article 3 of the EED (Energy Efficiency Directive (EU) 2023/1791) regarding the assessment of planning and major investment decisions made by the Transmission System Operator (TSO). Moreover, the pilot provided a methodological basis for the implementation of Article 27 of the EED, which requires that TSOs apply the EE1st principle in network planning, network development and investment decisions, and that the National Regulatory Authority verifies that alternatives and wider societal benefits are properly assessed.
More specifically, the pilot case aimed to:
- Assess to what extent the existing planning and CBA methodologies comply with EE1st requirements;
- Identify necessary improvements in planning procedures and CBA practice;
- Clarify roles and responsibilities of the TSO and the National Regulatory Authority in implementing EE1st.
In addition to a review of the existing CBA methodology applied by the Croatian TSO (HOPS), the pilot case tested the practical application of the EE1st principle on the assessment of a grid investment project (a representative 220 kV high-voltage transmission line revitalisation project). This was done by comparing the CBA previously done for this investment project, with a new assessment using a revised methodology aligning with EE1st.
Overall, the pilot concluded that, while targeted improvements in CBA methodology are useful, the upstream planning and scenario development (i.e. the NECP – National Energy and Climate Plan) play the central role in implementing the EE1st principle in transmission infrastructure. Integrating flexibility, storage and demand-side measures more explicitly at the planning stage would allow reinforcement needs to be better optimised before individual investment decisions (i.e. at project level) are assessed.
