DiXi Group Vice President: the transition to “green” energy remains a priority for the European Commission

Today, the transition to “green” energy is among key political priorities for the European Commission despite the change of its members, DiXi Group Vice President Anton Antonenko told Ukrainian Energy.

"The future has already come to the energy sector – this phrase precisely conveys the nature of discussions. Legislative acts of the Clean Energy For All Europeans package have been passed in the EU in mid-2019. Despite the change of the European Commission’s members, the transition to “green” energy is among key political priorities for the Ursula von der Leyen cabinet today, as Marie-Paule Benassi, [Acting] Director for Consumers said in her speech,” Mr. Antonenko said.

He also noted that the conference discussed the opportunities offered by the implementation of the “fourth energy package”, as these legislative acts are also called. MEP Maria da Graça Carvalho aptly outlined its purpose in one phrase: “a cleaner future accessible for people.”

“The speakers place emphasis on being more consumer-oriented, on the need to think about the balance of regulation. In their speeches, they addressed both companies and regulatory authorities. At the same time, they stressed that there are no “average statistical” consumers, as every one of them belongs to a certain segment, with whom they have to separately work. In addition, the speakers urged regulators to become on friendly terms with “geeks” to get better understanding of digital technologies and, therefore, today’s market. Regulators were also urged to communicate with each other as much as possible, because the new European energy market will require even more interconnections,” DiXi Group Vice President said.

As for electronic solutions, these were mentioned mostly as the future that is just around the corner.

“User-friendliness, affordability, relevance and positive experience in gaining consumer trust – that’s what is expected from apt innovations in this area. On the other hand, cybersecurity was mentioned as a subject that requires a more thorough study,” Mr. Antonenko stressed.

During the discussion, experts also touched upon the subject of electric cars, development of infrastructure for these vehicles and its payment systems.

“Eurelectric Association expects at least 33 million Europeans to buy electric cars in the next 10 years. At the same time, reduction of taxes in the electricity price was mentioned among the ideas of how to stimulate further demand – according to one of the speakers, the share of taxes in Latvia reaches 40%. One of Polish startups proposes to regard modern buildings as a part of energy infrastructure. Equipped with sensors, energy management systems and the necessary connectors, they could serve, in the opinion of the authors of this idea, as “new power stations”. Every time, connection of electric cars to the grid, online technologies, and many other know-how make us take a fresh look at this sector. Amid these developments, European energy markets expect new ideas and new players,” DiXi Group Vice President said.