The winter is not expected to be as tough as the last in terms of electricity prices. But the system is vulnerable – and now the government wants a new standard for operational safety in the electricity system.
– It is the basis for electricity to be safely and efficiently transported to where it is needed, when it is needed, says Minister of Energy and Industry Ebba Busch (KD) at a press conference.
The task of developing the new standard for operational reliability goes to Svenska kraftnät, and the background is the continued strained situation in the Swedish electricity supply.
– Today we have more power production than ever, but we still have higher electricity prices than normal and continued restrictions in the electricity system, says Busch.
Not as tough
Sweden is dependent on imports of electricity during hours of particularly high load. And the situation risks getting worse, according to Svenska kraftnät’s director general Lotta Medelius-Bredhe.
– We will have a sharp deterioration in a number of years to come because the demand for electricity increases, but production does not increase at the same rate, she says.
At the same time, Medelius-Bredhe assesses that the coming winter will not be as tough for households and companies as the previous one. What caused it then was that Russia cut off gas exports.
– Now they have received a good supply of liquefied natural gas and have a fairly good degree of filling in the layers. The starting point is that it looks better this winter. Then things can happen, she says.
No new electricity support
However, the electricity system is still far too vulnerable, emphasizes Busch. But there will be no new electricity support for consumers and companies.
TT: What could it be instead?
– We will return to that. But what should be considered is, on the one hand, general support, but also more specifically for the most economically vulnerable households, she says, and mentions the increased and extended housing allowance as reliable.
The Swedes need to assume that it will continue to be a tough situation with electricity going forward, she says.
– Until we have built the energy system strong again.
How the new standard for operational safety will be designed is not clear, nor when it can be in place. But it is important, according to Busch, who says that deficiencies in operational reliability can be linked both to the higher electricity prices that have affected southern Sweden and to the fact that companies are reluctant to establish themselves in many municipalities.
Svenska kraftnät must report the assignment in two parts, the first on October 15, and the final report in March 2024.