SNS Research Brief 107. Access to Power: The New Role of Grid Companies as Distribution System Operators

Hannes Sonnsjö

Sweden is about to embark on an extensive electrification process. Power grids play a key role in this regard, either serving as an enabler or, in a worst-case scenario, an obstacle. A new SNS report highlights how the power grid may be used more efficiently and thereby accelerate the process of connecting new electricity producers and consumers.

SNS Research Brief 107. Access to Power 44.0 KB PDF

The Swedish electricity system is undergoing major changes in terms of meeting a growing demand and ensuring a sustainable supply of energy. This not only requires electricity at competitive prices but also being connected to the grid within a reasonable amount of time. Transmission capacity shortages constitute a relatively new phenomenon challenging the current practices of the grid companies in terms of, for example, capacity planning and prioritizing between customers. This is argued by Hannes Sonnsjö in the SNS report Access to Power: The New Role of Grid Companies as Distribution System Operators.

“Power grids play a crucial role in the electricity supply of the future. We need strategic investments and measures to address the challenges we are facing,” says Hannes Sonnsjö, PhD student at the Faculty of Engineering, Lund University.

The national plans aimed at developing the grid have so far underestimated the rapid expansion of renewable electricity production, in particular wind and solar power. As a result, many projects get stuck in connection queues that are several years long.

One solution is to expand the grid. However, expansion is costly, has substantial effects on the environment and takes a long time, something that the industry often lacks. Sonnsjö instead emphasizes the importance of reinvesting in existing grids and enabling speedy connections.

“The power grids must be sufficiently flexible and efficient to meet the new demands. This involves making better use of the existing capacity and reducing congestion through smart planning; for example, by various actors pushing their energy use forward or backward in time,” argues Sonnsjö.

He highlights several obstacles facing grid companies, including technological, organizational and regulatory challenges. The current power grid is largely analog and needs to be digitalized. This process also requires several different actors collaborating – from electricity consumers and producers to government agencies and landowners. The report underscores that it is crucial to modernize the power grids to meet the demands of the future and to ensure Sweden’s climate transition.

“The opportunity cost of not investing in power grids is high and may have a negative impact on Sweden’s climate goals, its business sector and its economic development,” according to Hannes Sonnsjö.

About the report

The report Access to Power: The New Role of Grid Companies as Distribution System Operators is written within the framework of the SNS research project The Green Transition and the Business Sector. The report is based on interviews carried out in the spring of 2024 with seventeen grid companies and thirteen grid customers. The grid companies were selected to achieve a broad and representative sample based on a number of criteria: bidding zone, number of customers, turnover and form of ownership. The sample also captures variations in transmission capacity shortages, the number of pending applications, the use of conditional contracts and experiences of so-called flex markets. The grid customers were represented by six electricity producers (solar/wind), four operating in the field of energy solutions/storage and two large-scale industrial electricity consumers.

About the author

Hannes Sonnsjö, PhD student at the division of environmental and energy systems studies at the Faculty of Engineering, Lund University.