The European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) has welcomed the European Commission’s renewed focus on electricity infrastructure as part of the long-awaited European Grids Package, published on Wednesday. The association said the proposal marks an important acknowledgment of the structural bottlenecks that have hindered grid development for years.

ENTSO-E praised the Commission’s ambition to accelerate permitting procedures by granting grids a higher public-interest status, shortening approval timelines and streamlining administrative requirements. These measures, together with targeted initiatives to tackle supply-chain pressures and labour and skills shortages, are seen as essential to delivering a secure, affordable and low-carbon power system.

The association also endorsed the proposed shift from a “first-come, first-served” model to a “first-ready, first-served” approach for managing grid connection requests — a move it says could help integrate new projects more efficiently.

However, ENTSO-E warned that the package fails to simplify Europe’s existing planning framework. Instead, it introduces additional layers of governance that risk slowing down the development of urgently needed grid infrastructure.

Among its main concerns is the proposal to plan Europe’s entire grid under a single EU-wide scenario, without complementary bottom-up assessments reflecting Member States’ individual energy plans. ENTSO-E also questioned plans to delegate the methodology for identifying system needs to ACER, suggesting this could sideline national operators’ technical expertise. The possibility for the Commission to unilaterally call for new infrastructure projects also raised alarm, with ENTSO-E warning it could bypass national decision-making and weaken links with local communities.

The organisation further urged policymakers to reconsider the requirement for TSOs to earmark 25% of congestion revenues for projects on the Union List. These funds are currently used to lower consumer tariffs, expand capacity or support grid development under national regulatory oversight. ENTSO-E said the package should have gone further in addressing long-standing issues around cross-border cost allocation.

With energy policy shared between EU institutions and Member States, ENTSO-E stressed that the success of the Grids Package will depend on stronger cooperation — not greater centralisation. The group reiterated its commitment to work with the Commission, national governments, the European Parliament and stakeholders to ensure Europe’s grid planning and development framework remains “robust and realistic.”

“Together, we can build the electricity infrastructure needed to support Europe’s security, competitiveness and climate objectives,” the association said.