Homecoming of Europe's TSOs

Homecoming is celebrated in the US during that special season between september and october, between summer's abundance and autumn's challenges. That time of the year is also referred to by a long line of ancient rituals celebrated in Europe (even though their appearances may have changed throughout the years, as for example the German Oktoberfest or the American Thanksgiving holiday).

How do European Transport System Operators (TSOs) prepare for their "homecoming", especially in terms of issues concerning the European Union and Sustainable Development?
A small, non-exhaustive presentation of selected items.

By JJB

France
The French Réseau de Transport d'Electricité (RTE) surprises its web page users with many rather untypical features. For instance: on top of technical information about electricity transport, you can also download an iPhone application in order to keep track of the consumption and the prodution of electricity in France, as well as CO2 emissions. There is also a game where you can find out about the "electric mysteries of Europe" and the European Union - with a bit of luck, you might even win a trip to Brussels! Last but not least: a new site about electromagnetic fields has been launched ("La clef des champs"). Aiming to promote public information, this site also features a quiz and a game focused on electromagnetic fields in everyday life.

Germany
As the German Energy Blog put it: "Germany is still trying to put a price tag on the recent withdrawal from nuclear energy", whereas the big four German TSOs recently published information according to which the mandatory selling of renewable energies has received insufficient financial compensation lately. This financial reallocation had been created in order to compensate the TSOs, as they are obliged to sell expensive renewable electricity at low market prices. If the money provided should turn out to be insufficient, the effort may be increased by higher charges per kWh - even though the Federal Ministry for the Environment had previously indicated that charges per kWh might decrease in 2012, as the newspaper FAZ commented.

Italy
On Thursday, Italian TSO Terna communicated about its expectations concerning the so-called "Robin Hood Tax". As part of the Italian austerity plan, this measure represents an increase of the profit tax from 6,5% to 10,5%. Terna expects that this tax increase will cost the company 80 million euros. It is interesting to note, though, that the notion of "Robin Hood Tax" initially meant taxing purely financial transactions, and not increasing the general level of the profit tax...

Spain
The Spanish TSO Red Eléctrica de España (REE) is also facing issues related to the recent turmoils of the Eurozone. Therefore, REE was pleased to announce this Friday that Standard&Poor's maintained its positive REE-rating, with a possibility for even better ratings over the long term. According to a press release, this might also imply that REE's rating will remain stable regardless of the country's overall rating. The company explained that Standard&Poor's assessment found that REE's investment profile had been considerably improved.