Fabio Genoese, Research Fellow at CEPS, has published a Policy Brief with the NorthSeaGrid, a project funded by the European Commission as part of its Intelligent Energy – Europe (IEE) programme. The paper explores the role of support schemes for renewables in creating a meshed offshore grid. Its key findings include:
North Sea states’ national support schemes for renewables are rather incompatible and represent a barrier to cooperation.
More coherent support approaches to offshore wind projects will be conducive to the creation of a meshed offshore grid in the North Sea.
Policymakers could resolve incompatibilities by prescribing common guidelines for national support schemes, focusing on common grid access rules and common price-setting mechanisms for certain renewable energy technologies.
The institutional procedure set out in the Commission’s 2030 Climate and Energy package could enhance cooperation.
The paper can also be downloaded at http://www.northseagrid.info/publications
