AGERPRES special correspondent Nicoleta Gherasi reports: Eliminating bottlenecks in the grids could reduce the wholesale price of energy by around 40% over the next ten years, with more than half of that reduction achieved in the next four to five years, E.ON Romania CEO Volker Raffel said on Wednesday at the Eurelectric Power Summit 2026.

'Part of the discussion concerns how much we are willing to pay for well-functioning grids. The other part concerns who bears these costs - for example, the tariff structure. In Romania, we still do not have a capacity component of the fee. Payment is made exclusively according to the energy consumed, expressed in MWh. What does this mean? That people are reserving capacity just because it's free. As a result, capacity that could be used by other consumers remains blocked and unavailable to those who truly need it. I believe the tariff structure can play an important role in freeing up this capacity and in using the existing infrastructure more efficiently. Another misunderstanding we sometimes encounter is by some regulators - and I can understand the frustration. Last week I attended a conference where I had the honour of receiving confirmation from the European Commissioner for Energy of €100 million in funding for the CARMEN project, our Dynamic Line Rating project in southeastern Europe, enabling better use of grid capacities. Representatives of regulatory authorities were also present at the event, saying: 'Everyone talks about electrification and rising electricity consumption, but where is the electricity flowing? We do not yet see these volumes in the numbers'. So there is a certain fear around,' Raffel explained.

He stressed that everyone wants to protect customers and noted that Romania's current wholesale electricity price is €135/MWh, and that if grid bottlenecks are removed quickly, it could fall by 40% over the next ten years.

'Soon we will publish a study by the Romanian consultancy Valorem, which shows that the current wholesale electricity price is around €45/MWh in Spain, €90/MWh in Germany and €135/MWh in Romania. If we talk about competitiveness in Europe, then we must address this issue in Southeast Europe as well. The study says if we unbottleneck the grid rapidly, we can bring down the total wholesale market price by 40% in 10 years and already more than half in next four or five years. This is potential we have to unleash and to make use of,' the E.ON Romania head said.

He added that, according to another study, the risk of over-investing in grids is lower than the risk of under-investing, since the economic costs generated by under-investment are significantly higher than those associated with additional investments in grids and their more efficient use.

'We are talking about billions of euros - and at European level, about many billions,' Raffel underscored.

He also noted that investments in the sector cannot be financed solely from public money or EU funds; private capital is also needed.

'And this is very easy. As a capital return must be in a way that the investment is happening. So that is key element number one. Regulators often focus on lowering the price of energy. But if energy becomes cheaper and at the same time we continue to invest in grids, the share of distribution costs in the final bill will go up. So what would be the lesson out of it? That we do not want cheaper energy, or that cheaper energy is not worth distributing? Obviously not. Therefore, we have to develop the grids at all levels: IT, flexibility and other digital solutions, as well as investments in the physical infrastructure,' Raffel said.

In his view, operators should be allowed to make the most efficient investments and should not be hindered by rules that no longer reflect reality.

'For example, we should not condition the connection of a battery on the requirement that it must be able to use the grid 100% of the time. If it could do so 99.5% of the time, connection would already be possible. Otherwise, we end up saying 'no' by applying old, rigid rules that are no longer necessary. Or by saying that IT investments are not needed. Or that it is enough to invest only in the physical infrastructure. In reality, we need both. That is why the two essential things are not tying operators' hands and allowing them to do their job; ensuring adequate remuneration of investments so they can be recovered through the final invoice; and giving operators the flexibility they need to invest efficiently,' the E.ON Romania official explained.

He also noted that smart solutions are undoubtedly necessary, because if the few hours in which real grid bottlenecks occur are managed correctly, much more capacity can be freed than could be obtained solely by expanding existing infrastructure.

At the same time, he added, as hundreds of thousands of new prosumer projects are connected, strong and expanded physical grids are also needed, and it is therefore important to unbottleneck the infrastructure in both directions: through more efficient use of existing grids and through their development and modernization.

Regarding battery storage systems, Raffel said they are 'the new element around', with roughly 250 MW of such storage capacity having received grid-connection approvals in the company's distribution network in northeastern Romania.

'So far, none of the project managers has signed the connection contracts we have offered. We hope these projects will move forward, but we see a similar situation with renewable energy projects. At present, we apply the 'first come, first served' principle, which means we end up reserving capacity for projects that ultimately are not built. Meanwhile, other projects must wait. After two years, we find that the first project is no longer going ahead, and time and capacity have been blocked unnecessarily. On the other hand, trying to completely clear the queue of connection requests would also not be the right approach. A balance is needed,' Raffel continued.

Energy industry leaders, innovators and service providers are meeting on Wednesday and Thursday in the Finnish capital for the Eurelectric Power Summit, held this year under the theme 'Bringing Power to Life'.

According to the organizers, the event offers the tools, connections and insights needed to stay ahead of the rapid changes shaping the energy systems of the future.

The 2026 edition focuses on accelerating electrification across all sectors to meet Europe's climate goals; ensuring energy-supply security in a changing world; strengthening Europe's global competitiveness through innovative energy solutions; and mobilizing the investments and infrastructure needed to turn this vision into reality.

Eurelectric is the federation of the European electricity industry and represents more than 3,500 utilities active in power generation, distribution and supply. AGERPRES (RO - editing by: Andreea Marinescu; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)