The List of Projects of Common Interest is being published by the European Commission since 2013. The list brings together projects with significance that goes beyond the borders of the individual Member States and with a crucial role in meeting the energy and environmental objectives of the European Union. Its fifth edition includes projects from four energy areas. The area of electricity transmission and storage was the most represented (67 projects), followed by gas (20), CO2 reduction (6) and smart grids (transmission and distribution, 5 projects). Grant Thornton has participated in four smart grids projects.

Getting on the list of Projects of Public Interest is not easy. Strict conditions need to be met for this to happen. “PCI projects are very large, involve multiple Member States and they must meet strict criteria in terms of market integration, energy security, renewable energy integration, etc. We are therefore proud that our company has been involved in four of the five smart grids projects that have met the conditions,” says Michael Sikora.

Inclusion on the PCIs list is not just a matter of prestige and proof of relevance of the project. It also has very specific benefits, such as a faster approval process or the possibility to apply for co-financing from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF). “Our company not only participated in the project management of project preparation, but also brought its own professional perspective and helped with the preparation of the implementation of individual indicators and benefits,” Michael Sikora adds.

What is a Smart Grid?

Smart grids are power and communication networks that enable real-time control of the production and consumption of electricity, both locally and globally. They work on the principle of two-way communication between generation sources and appliances about the possibilities of energy production and consumption. The essence is to equip customers with digital meters with two-way information flow. As a result, pricing tariffs can be created in real time according to the current situation in the grid and efficient consumption management is enabled. 

A link to the full list of Projects of Common Interest  can be found here.

Author: Zbyněk Bolcek