The Nordic transmission system operators (TSOs) will abolish their cooperation organisation Nordel, originally established 46 years ago. The newly established European Network of Transmission System Operators (ENTSO-E) will replace Nordel. Regional cooperation within ENTSO-E provides a good forum to develop transmission grids and the electricity market in the area of the Baltic Sea.

Nordel’s last annual meeting was held in Helsinki last week. The meeting had many participants from the Nordic countries and other European countries. Representatives of the European Commission, electricity market authorities and market players presented their views of European trends and developments in the electricity market.

“The traditional Nordic cooperation has been a true success story in this field, but even it calls for a new aspect,” says Fingrid’s president and CEO, Jukka Ruusunen.

“The power system and its operation continue to be technically in the Nordic domain, but it is better to plan for example the transmission grid as a whole in the area of the Baltic Sea. Similarly, we should integrate the electricity market from the Nordic countries towards the Baltic countries and Poland on one hand and towards Western Europe (Germany, Benelux countries and France) on the other hand,” Ruusunen said.

When 42 European TSOs from 32 countries established ENTSO-E, it was agreed that the existing organizations will be closed down and that all co-operation will be shifted under the new organisation. In addition to Nordel, the other organizations due to be wound down at the beginning of July include UCTE, the operative organization for the transmission grid in Continental Europe, and ETSO, which promoted the European electricity market. The establishment of the new organization was partly necessitated by the EU’s single electricity market regulations, which became effective recently.

ENTSO-E is to promote the integration of the EU’s internal market and to create security of supply and market rules pertaining to transmission grids. It works in cooperation with the Commission of the EU, national authorities, and electricity market parties. The office of the organization is situated in Brussels, and it will initially have a secretariat of about 20 persons.