E-REDES closed the cycle of three conferences dedicated to the Electricity Distribution Network Development and Investment Plan (PDIRD-E). The event, held in Lisbon on July 1, brought together national and international experts to explore the challenges of modernizing the electricity grid, which is crucial to supporting the country's energy transition and sustainable economic development.
At the opening of the conference, João Gouveia de Carvalho, member of the Board of Directors of E-REDES, highlighted the crucial importance of grid modernization as a fundamental pillar for the energy transition, essential to support the growing integration of renewable sources and maintain national competitiveness in the European context.
He pointed out that approximately 30% of the electricity grid's assets have already exceeded their useful life, highlighting the need for a proactive approach to ensure their renewal.
The question today is not whether to renew the network, but how to do it. This is a challenge for several generations, and the decisions we make now will have a lasting impact on the future.
João Gouveia de Carvalho also emphasized the importance of digitalization and artificial intelligence as necessary tools for modernizing networks, making it possible to increase the speed of response in the event of a power failure, as well as enabling faults to be resolved remotely.
Experts from McKinsey & Company, such as Jose Luis González, junior partner at the consultancy, and Yves Frelon, head of strategic studies at Enedis' Network Planning and Economics Department, shared valuable insights into their experiences and best practices in asset renewal and strategic network planning. González argued that the renewal of electricity distribution networks is essential not only because of the increase in renewable generation and self-production, but also because of the increasingly extreme weather events that overload the networks.
A panel of experts, including representatives from E-REDES (João Brito Martins, administrator), Assetsman(Edmea Adell, president of the industrial asset manager), DGEG (Jerónimo Cunha, general director) and Sotécnica - VINCI Energies (Gonçalo Sampaio, executive director), emphasized the need for multi-faceted collaboration between government, energy companies and local communities to tackle current and future electricity infrastructure challenges.
José Ferrari Careto, CEO of E-REDES, reiterated the company's commitment to investing in a resilient and modern network through the PDIRD: "We are determined to define the investments from 2026 to 2030 in order to ensure a robust infrastructure that supports not only the energy transition, but also Portugal's economic growth and territorial cohesion.
The conference was also attended by Maria João Pereira, Secretary of State for Energy, who closed the event by stressing the government's concern for consumers and the importance of investments that do not overcharge the tariff.
The PDIRD-E conference cycle has established itself as a significant milestone in the debate on the future of energy in Portugal, highlighting the critical importance of modernizing the electricity grid in order to achieve ambitious energy targets and build a more sustainable and resilient future for all Portuguese.
Photo by Matilde Fieschi (Expresso)
