Europe’s Smart Energy Expert Group holds first meeting

The EC’s Smart Energy Expert Group has been formed and has held its first meeting at which the ‘Rules of Procedures’ were adopted.

The Smart Energy Expert Group, which was established in the energy system digitalisation action plan, takes over from and extends the work of the previous Smart Grids Task Force with the mission to accelerate the digitalisation of the energy system and contribute to the smart energy transition.

Co-chaired by representatives from the DG Energy and DG Communications Networks, the tasks of the group include providing expertise on the energy transition and the digitalisation of the energy system to the Commission, promoting the exchange of experiences and best practices and assisting the Commission with the preparation and implementation of legislation.

Following a call for members in October 2023, the Group now constitutes 36 organisations, public authorities from the 27 member states and the five statutory public entities, i.e. the energy and electronic communications regulatory bodies ACER and BEREC, the TSO organisations ENTSO-E and ENTSOG and the DSO Entity.

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The 36 organisations comprise primarily European sector trade, business and professional associations/organisations, among them CEER, CurrENT, EASE, E.DSO, ESMIG, Eurelectric, Eurogas, GEODE, smartEN, etc.

It also includes three national research organisations, either as the only ones that applied or that were accepted – the Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific Research (TNO) and Stichting ElaadNL both from the Netherlands, and the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland.

There are no individual members in the Group but the rules of procedure allow for the participation of invited experts with specific expertise to participate in its work.

Although they are not yet listed, the Group is proposed to have three subgroup working groups on ‘Data for Energy’, ‘Consumer Empowerment and Protection’ and ‘Cybersecurity’.

The intent of the digitalisation action plan was that the Smart Energy Expert Group would be set up by March 2023, but its later appearance with its planned nominal two meetings per year and work in between is nevertheless expected to bolster the ongoing efforts in the sector to deliver on the targets that have been set.