European innovative grid technology association, currENT, has welcomed the outcome of COP26. currENT, of which SuperNode is a founding member, released a statement on how COP26 has underlined the key role innovative grid technologies will have to play in the push for decarbonisation.
Technologies such as dynamic line rating, modular power flow technology and superconducting cable systems can update and modernise transmission networks, creating a more resilient, cost effective system with much greater capacity.
To better take advantage of the benefits of innovative grid technologies and to make up for the apparent gap between COP26 commitment and the urgently needed action, currENT recommends the following to policymakers:
- Apply the “NOVA” principle to network development plans, i.e. optimization before reinforcement before expansion,
- Include innovative grid technologies in the network planning toolbox,
- Consider that innovative grid technologies can be deployed faster, less expensively, and more resiliently,
- Expand cost-benefit analysis to consider a broader range of economic, environmental, and social impacts, and
- Reconsider CAPEX-oriented regulatory frameworks which reward more expensive network solutions at the expense of more efficient ones.
Read currENT’s complete statement here: currENT COP26 statement