The European Commission has approved €86.6 million French aid for the SuperGrid research programme to develop innovative energy transmission networks.
The SuperGrid networks will use high-voltage direct and alternating current (up to a million volts) designed for the large-scale transmission of energy from renewable sources, many of them off-shore, that are far from the centres of consumption. The networks, together with flexible storage facilities, will make it possible to manage the intermittent nature of renewables and will ensure network stability and security.
The European Commission has concluded that the aid granted by France to the Supergrid Institut pour la transition énergétique for a research project aimed at developing a new generation of long-distance energy transmission networks complies with the EU rules on State aid. It will promote important European objectives such as securing energy supplies and protecting the environment without unduly distorting competition.
Joaquín Almunia, Commission Vice President responsible for competition, stated:
‘Securing energy independence and reducing CO2 emissions in Europe are key priorities for the Commission. The SuperGrid project pursues these very objectives. The project will have an undeniable scientific impact, while the distortions of competition will be limited.’
In 2013 France notified its plans to grant a subsidy of €86.6 million to SAS SuperGrid, a start-up established to manage the public-private partnership created for this purpose.
R&D work will be necessary on long-distance energy transmission (including a new generation of cables), new transformers (including replacement of SF6 - sulfur hexaflouride, a highly toxic gas currently used in gas-insulated substations) and storage and stabilisation technologies.
The expertise of a number of partners (6 public and 6 private) will be harnessed to develop the supergrid technologies. If the R&D projects prove successful, patent licences will be sold to interested industrial firms on market terms.
On completing its review, the Commission concluded that the SuperGrid project suffered from market failures justifying the use of public aid and that the aid gave enterprises a necessary and sufficient incentive to change their behaviour and carry out a project they would not otherwise have undertaken.
The global supergrid market comprises network electrotechnical systems, energy flow management systems, and cables. The project will also make it possible to target related markets, including the variable‑speed hydraulic pump-turbine market.
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