CEDEC - European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies

CEDEC - European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies had the honour of being hosted by the Mayor of Prague, Mr. Doc. MUDr. Bohuslav Svoboda, CSc., at the Prague House in Brussels for a Gala Reception to celebrate the recent engagement of Technologie hlavního města Prahy (THMP) as CEDEC's newest member. We were delighted to be welcomed also by Tomas Jilek, Chairman of the Board, and the Prague City Councillor for Infrastructure, Mr. Michal Hroza.   Since entering the energy sector in 2022, THMP has been committed to providing #reliable and #sustainable #electricity and #gas services while advancing Prague’s #smartcity initiatives. CEDEC looks forward to this new collaboration with THMP, fostering #innovation, knowledge exchange, and strengthened #cooperation in view of future #EU #energy policies.

💡 Utilitalia convinces Italian members in the European Parliament of the added value of the Italian multi-utilities: for the #decarbonization agenda, for #circulareconomy and for #digitalisation! 👏 During this afternoon's event in Brussels, Utilitalia's President Filippo Brandolini (HERA) and Vice-President Roberto Tasca (President A2A) , demonstrated the contribution of Italian multi-utilities to the European competitiveness. 🎤 I underlined during the event that CEDEC continues to fully support Utilitalia and its energy companies in Brussels - backed by 2000 other local and regional utility companies in the EU that also strive for technology-neutral, cost-efficient and affordable energy transition measures.

Warm thanks to the CEDEC Directors for another successful Board of Directors meeting in Brussels, where we presented and exchanged the latest news on the EU policy landscape and more. 👏 CEDEC is furthermore honoured to welcome Technologie hlavního města Prahy as the newest addition to its Board!

🥂🌍2025: here's to a defining year for competitiveness! European Net Zero Alliance (ENZA) had the great pleasure to co-organise a New Year's Drink at the European Parliament, hosted by MEP Christian Ehler, to bring together key stakeholders in the energy transition to discuss the EU's path to net zero. Former ENZA Chair Gert De Block (CEDEC- European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies) and current ENZA Chair Jorgo Chatzimarkakis (Hydrogen Europe) reaffirmed ENZA's commitment to support policymakers in delivering a competitive energy transition. ENZA's strong network fosters synergies across sectors and technologies. The members of our alliance are eager to support a pragmatic and technology-open approach to achieving climate neutrality. Thank you to MEP Christian Ehler and all ENZA members and participants for joining us. Read more about ENZA in our recent publication 100 measures for 100 days: https://lnkd.in/egKD54Wq Bioenergy Europe CEDEC- European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies COGEN Europe ePURE: European renewable ethanol association Eurogas Cerame-Unie EUTurbines - European Association of Gas and Steam Turbine Manufacturers GEODE - The voice of local energy distributors across Europe EUGINE – The European Engine Power Plants Association Hydrogen Europe CEWEP European Builders Confederation EBC ESWET - European Suppliers of Waste-to-Energy Technology ETN Global Fertilizers Europe Solar Heat Europe (ESTIF) EHI - Association of the European Heating Industry Cepi CEFS (EU SUGAR) EWABA SMEunited European Biogas Association Euroheat & Power GIE

Today all the DSOs associations operating in Brussels (CEDEC- European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies, EU DSO Entity, E.DSO, Eurelectric and GEODE - The voice of local energy distributors across Europe) organised the Breakfast Energy Session "Let’s connect: Distribution grids as key enablers for clean, reliable, and affordable electricity", hosted by MEP Anna Stürgkh (European Parliament). The event was an important moment of cooperation in which we aimed to inform the new MEPs and advisors about the role and the EU relevance of #DSOs. ✒️ Opening the event, MEP Anna Stürgkh stated: “Electricity grids are the backbone of the energy transition. I am pleased to see that the relevance of distribution grids has reached the necessary attention on the EU level. It is now important to adapt the legislative framework to update grids to the needs of a decentralised, renewables based and modern energy system”. The discussion was the opportunity to hear from Director Lukasz Kolinski (DG ENER, European Commission), Mr. Krzysztof (Chris) Bolesta, Poland Secretary of State in the Ministry of Climate and Environment and MEPs who joined the event and who will work on an own-initiative report on electricity grids in the coming months. To wrap up the event, the associations presented four key measures and principles of important relevance for DSOs in the next five years. 🇪🇺 Introduce a grid mainstreaming approach to ensure DSOs’ needs are considered in every new and revised regulation. 📉 Align EU financing instruments with the net-zero targets and DSOs’ needs to gear #investments towards the required development of the distribution grid. New EU Competitiveness Funds and other funding for infrastructure should ensure easier access for DSOs to that funding, taking into account their regulation. 🤝 Ensure the #EUGreenDeal’s implementation on the ground by enabling anticipatory investments, ensuring faster-permitting procedures, supporting the #supplychain, and providing suitable and forward-looking regulatory framework to guarantee the right investment-friendly environment. 🧑🏫 Launch a European Grid Academy within the framework of the EU’s Net-Zero Academies to build and develop the right #skills in the direct & indirect grid value chain to address the labour market shortages and transformation. 👏 Thank you to all the participants for the engaging and fruitful discussion!

📢 Key Recommendations on #CircularEconomy from ENZA's #100measures100days paper: Advancing the circular economy requires recognising waste as a resource and fostering circular business models to drive sustainability and competitiveness. Key recommendations include: ✔️ Waste-to-Energy should be recognised as a sustainable, affordable, and secure source of energy and secondary materials. ✔️ The Circular Economy Act must incentivise circular business models through supporting the EU-wide development of circularity hubs for SMEs and providing easily accessible funding through circularity vouchers. ✔️ Stronger enforcement mechanisms are needed to ensure that the waste hierarchy is respected, prioritising waste prevention, recycling, and energy recovery over landfilling. This will safeguard the role of Waste-to-Energy in managing non-recyclable waste, supporting both energy transition and circular economy goals. ✔️ Possibilities and markets to trade carbon removals should be established. ✔️ Secure fair competition on global markets for renewable EU products and ensure compliance with global trade rules and EU regulations for the import of goods to the internal market. 📑 Read ENZA's full recommendations for the first 100 days of the new European Commission here: https://lnkd.in/egKD54Wq

📈 Key Recommendations on #Competitiveness from ENZA's #100measures100days paper: Enhancing EU competitiveness requires streamlined processes and cost-efficient energy solutions to sustain growth and innovation. Key recommendations include: ✔️ Prevent further erosion of carbon leakage protection—biomass decarbonisation pathways should not be penalised under the EU ETS. ✔️ Develop an export solution for EU products facing unfair competition in markets without equivalent carbon pricing. ✔️ Apply equal sustainability and quality standards to imported heating products, including pricing embedded emissions similar to EU mechanisms. ✔️ Accelerate on-site permitting and prioritise decentralised renewable and efficient energy generation for secure, affordable industrial energy. ✔️ Support efficient solutions, like cogeneration, to cut energy costs by 10–20% and boost competitiveness. ✔️ Introduce technology-neutral targets for renewable and low-carbon gases to drive GHG reductions and meet rising demand. 📑 Read the full recommendations for the first 100 days of the new European Commission here: https://lnkd.in/egKD54Wq

🎙️ Live from Paris: 👏 Congratulations to the new #CEDEC President Dr. Kai Roger Lobo, elected today with applause by the CEDEC Board of Directors ! 🌻 Warm thanks to his predecessor Dr. Urban Keussen for the excellent guidance in our work and for the trusted working together !

100 Measures for 100 Days: an ENZA initiative to accelerate the EU's transition to net-zero As the new European Commission begins its term, the European Net Zero Alliance (ENZA) shared a series of solutions that its member associations can offer to advance the green transition, and concrete recommendations to shape key policy initiatives aimed at addressing climate-neutrality and ensuring the affordability and competitiveness of Europe's energy transition. CEDEC- European Federation of Local & Regional Energy Companies, together with 23 other associations, is proud to have contributed to this paper which fosters synergies across sectors and technologies. 📑 Have a look at the full report below or read it here: : https://lnkd.in/d-8TuXEd

Fast forward. Pause? Play!    Yesterday's CEDEC annual Congress #CEDEC2024 was a great success!    Thanks to our participants and distinguished speakers Adel El Gammal, Lena Schilling, Mara Berzina, Tadhg O'Briain, Dr. Urban Keussen, Eva Hennig, Federica Sabbati, Alexandra Tudoroiu, Dick Weiffenbach, Elina Bardram, Tom Vandicke, Claire Roumet, and Jean Pierre Hollevoet for their contribution and to Sonja van Renssen for her lively moderation of the event.    There were many valuable discussions on shaping the future of the EU energy transition. Here are 4 key takeaways that stood out:    ⏩ The energy systems of the future can't ignore #climatechange: we shall design resilient and diversified energy mixes through a sector-wide integrated approach.  ⏩ The #energytransition needs to be citizen-centered, driven by a bottom-up approach.  ⏩ #Decarbonisation will require investment, and public funding won't be enough: we need a market that triggers private investment.  ⏩ We must listen to #consumers, especially vulnerable ones, and put a focus on local action, strengthening resilience and adaptation strategies.     CEDEC Secretary General Gert De Block concluded the Congress by emphasizing the need for the energy sector to work together to create a cohesive energy strategy that balances the urgency of climate goals with the political realities we face. It's time to "Play!": to act now and develop integrated strategies with sustainable energy sources that can meet the challenges of the energy transition in the most effective and cost-efficient way.    Thanks for following us and see you next year!    #CEDEC2024 #EnergyTransition #Innovation #IndustryLeadership    Pictures by @eliogermani