Electrical infrastructures

The planning of electric infrastructure development must address numerous challenges:

1. The strong need for renewal of infrastructures: the average age of assets currently in service in France is close to 50 years.

2. The increase in consumption, particularly for electrolysis and electric vehicle charging.

3. The increase in renewable production, particularly intermittent, whose integration requires more infrastructure (for 1 GW of capacity) than "base" production (e.g., nuclear).

The challenge of mastering, optimizing, and prioritizing this wave of investments is all the more significant because:

1. The energy transition represents a significant effort for all economic actors, and network tariffs could increase significantly under the effect of a massive wave of investments: ~4% for an average household by 2035 for the sole increase in TURPE HTB in France, where RTE's investment level is currently similar to that of the 1980s-1990s but is expected to be much higher in the 2030s and 2040s.

2. The current pressure on material prices leads to an increase in the cost of structures, and these tensions are likely to be recurrent in the years to come due to demand for critical raw materials for the energy transition.

3. Transporter and technical subcontractor teams (supply and installation of electrical equipment) are heavily solicited due to the extent of the work to be carried out.

Furthermore, European transport networks are now reaching certain limits due to the energy transition, which reinforces the challenge: connection times for wind and solar parks reaching 5 to 10 years in some areas, network congestion costs of ~€4 billion in Germany, etc.

In this context, it will be interesting to observe in 2024 the evolution of the positions of public authorities, regulators, and TSOs regarding:

1. Methods of planning connections: in France, the Law on the Acceleration of Renewable Energy Production voted in 2023 brings about initial changes to the conditions for the installation of renewable production.

2. The technical means employed to manage network constraints: local flexibility markets, development of battery storage to absorb constraints, smart connections, etc.