Electricity grids across Europe are entering a new phase of investment. And with it, a key challenge: how to modernise networks for electrification while keeping energy bills affordable. Join us next week for the next session in RAP’s Electrification Academy: "Mitigating bill increases from network developments." As grid costs rise due to electrification, renewables expansion, ageing infrastructure and digitalisation, policymakers face a growing tension between affordability and the investments needed for the energy transition. In this webinar, we’ll explore how to navigate that trade-off. 📅 April 8 With: • Marion Santini (RAP) • Zsuzsanna Pató (RAP) • Michał Smoleń (Polish Economic Institute) • Albert Banal-Estanol (Universitat Pompeu Fabra & Barcelona School of Economics) We’ll discuss: • How grid investment needs are shaping electricity costs • Policy and regulatory tools to manage these costs • Key trade-offs in financing the grid transition • Implications for affordability, electrification and industrial competitiveness 👉 Register here: https://lnkd.in/eitAqYBg We invite you to bring your questions and join the conversation.
Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)
Public Policy Offices
Montpelier, VT 10,183 followers
Energizing Change
About us
The Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)® is an independent, non-partisan, non-governmental organization dedicated to accelerating the transition to a clean, reliable, and efficient energy future. We help energy and air quality regulators and NGOs navigate the complexities of power sector policy, regulation, and markets and develop innovative and practical solutions designed to meet local conditions. We focus on the world's four largest power markets: China, Europe, India, and the United States.
- Website
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http://www.raponline.org
External link for Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)
- Industry
- Public Policy Offices
- Company size
- 11-50 employees
- Headquarters
- Montpelier, VT
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Founded
- 1992
Locations
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Primary
Get directions
50 State Street
Suite 3
Montpelier, VT 05602, US
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Get directions
Rue de la Science 23
Brussels, B-1040, BE
Employees at Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP)
Updates
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The final ENTSO-E report on the 28 April 2025 #IberianBlackout is out today. The report showcases the causes of the blackout and offers recommendations. Here's the view of RAP's power team principal Zsuzsanna Pató on the findings: 🗣️ "The ENTSO-E report confirms what many already understood: the Iberian blackout was the result of multiple system failures, not renewable energy. If we want to prevent similar events in the future, we need to operate Europe’s grids in real-time and coordinate connected generators more closely." The report points to clear priorities: strengthen voltage control, improve real-time monitoring, and enhance coordination across system operators and generators. Modern, well-managed grids are the foundation of a reliable, renewables-based power system—and the best safeguard against future blackouts. 📄 Link to the ENTSO-E report: https://lnkd.in/gTWGgMWt
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Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) reposted this
Meet Louisa Eberle, a Senior Associate at the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). She'll be a featured speaker on our upcoming webinar, co-sponsored by Purdue Institute for a Sustainable Future (ISF) entitled Data Center Download: Sustainability & Clean Energy Strategies for Indiana’s AI Data Centers, on Wednesday, March 25, from 11:30 AM to 12:45 PM EST. Be sure to sign up to hear her take on how smarter regulatory processes can speed up the transition to clean energy: https://lnkd.in/edtmRCFG Can't make it? Sign up here to get the replay delivered to your inbox: https://lnkd.in/gJs-M6aR
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⚡ Electricity pricing reform: reducing costs while supporting electrification As policymakers look for ways to make electricity more affordable, targeted reforms can play a key role — if designed carefully. In a recent Sustainable Views article, RAP’s Zsuzsanna Pató points to practical options: ➡️ Powering value added tax on electricity, as has been done in Ireland ➡️ Moving taxes and levies on electricity bills to general taxation or into the national budget ➡️ Reducing grid fees by making better use of the EU’s existing network. These measures highlight an important point: electricity prices are shaped not only by markets, but also by policy choices. As the EU advances its electrification agenda, aligning pricing structures with policy goals will be essential. 📖 Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/dhrUqsMc
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Public EV charging must be affordable, accessible and well planned to support the transition to electric mobility. If charging prices remain high, the switch to electric vehicles will slow down. At the same time, poorly planned infrastructure can increase costs for operators and the electricity system. The latest paper by Dr. Julia Hildermeier and Jaap Burger explores how public authorities and regulators can make public EV charging cheaper. It presents seven practical measures, including: ⚡ Using public tenders to deploy charging infrastructure strategically ⚡ Improving planning and data sharing between grid and mobility stakeholders ⚡ Enabling shared grid connections and smart energy management ⚡ Introducing time-varying charging prices so EV users can benefit from cheaper electricity 📄 Read the paper: https://lnkd.in/eTRfWx9r #EnergyTransition #EVCharging #ElectricVehicles #EnergyPolicy #Electrification
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We're delighted to be involved in this important collaboration. Do take Neil up on his offer to discuss tariff design, customer energy resources and ways for customers to take part in — and benefit from — the #EnergyTransition.
Electricity #tariff reform is a key element to a fair and clean #energytransition in Thailand – and beyond. As rooftop solar, batteries and electric vehicles pick up, electricity pricing shapes consumption, system efficiency and costs. Updating tariff structures is essential to keep the transition reliable, affordable and equitable for all consumers. Last week, together with Energy Research Institute – Chulalongkorn University and AFRY Management Consulting, we convened policymakers, regulators and utilities alongside representatives from the private sector, academia and civil society in Bangkok to discuss perspectives on opportunities and challenges linked to electricity tariff reforms. The discussions were hosted by Dr Supawan Name, Project Lead Energy Policy Southeast Asia at Agora Energiewende, and featured a keynote presentation by Dr Neil Lessem from Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP), sharing lessons from Australia on designing #electricitypricing for rapidly changing energy systems. Key takeaways from the discussion included: ⚡️ Thailand’s growing share of renewable energy requires electricity pricing that enables flexibility and helps the power system respond to changing supply and demand. 💡 Well-designed electricity tariffs can encourage consumers and businesses to use electricity more efficiently, support battery storage and help reduce overall power system costs over time. ☀️ As more households and companies generate their own electricity by private rooftop solar, reforming electricity tariffs is important to ensure system costs are shared fairly among all consumers. Insights from the discussions will feed into our ongoing work supporting Thailand’s next phase of electricity tariff reform, helping enable a flexible, cost-efficient and renewable-ready power system, with lessons relevant across #ASEAN. We thank colleagues from Department of Alternative Energy and Efficiency (DEDE Thailand), Energy Regulatory Commission of Thailand, State-owned electricity enterprise egat, METROPOLITAN ELECTRICITY AUTHORITY and The Provincial Electricity Authority, as well as all participants, for the open and constructive exchange.
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Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) reposted this
I recently participated in a NERC workshop in Atlanta focused on the development of a proposed national energy assurance reliability standard. I participated in the State Regulation of Resource Adequacy and Energy Assurance panel with Commissioner Hawkins (WI), Judge Towell (VA), Pete Warnken (ERCOT), William Seufert (MRO) and Craig Glazer (PJM). I was impressed with the many activities already underway in states and regions that are targeted at proactively addressing energy assurance. In my comments I emphasized activities underway in western states, at the California ISO and at the Western Power Pool to proactively address energy adequacy concerns. As NERC continues its work on an energy assurance standard, it's critical for states and RTOs/ISOs to actively engage in the process. Reliability planning in North America is inherently regional, and national standards will need to be flexible, adaptable, and reflect the diversity of system conditions across the grid. I share more thoughts here: https://lnkd.in/gmsvWcQM
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🗣️ "V2G is like super smart charging. But it will only happen if smart charging by default is set right everywhere." Yesterday, our colleague Dr. Julia Hildermeier participated in a panel at the "Evision 2026 Fleet Forward" event hosted by Eurelectric, where she highlighted how smart charging and cost-reflective pricing can unlock flexibility from EVs and reduce costs for both consumers and the power system. Special thanks to the other panelists Robin Loos, Henry Wattel and Marion Labatut for the insightful conversation, and to Roger Atkins for the stellar moderating. #EnergyTransition #TransportDecarbonisation #SmartCharging #ElectricVehicles #EnergyPolicy #CleanMobility #GridFlexibility
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Great discussion led by RAP's Samuel Thomas, Richard Lowes and partners from the IEA TCPs on a topic that is becoming increasingly urgent: the electricity-to-gas price ratio and its impact on heat pump uptake. As gas price volatility continues, structural reforms in how energy taxes and levies are allocated will be key to making electrification solutions like heat pumps more attractive for consumers. Recording and slides available below 👇 #Electrification #EnergyEfficiency #EnergyFlexibility #HeatPumps #EnergyPolicy #EnergyPrices
Last week Richard Lowes from the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP) joined me and Caroline Haglund Stignor from the HPT TCP - Technology Collaboration Programme on Heat Pumping Technologies by IEA on the User-Centred Energy Systems TCP by IEA Academy for a session on electricity to gas price ratios and heat pump uptake. This could not have been more topical, given what we have seen happen to gas prices over the last couple of days. Prolonged higher gas prices should be a boon for heat pump uptake, but European governments can provide both energy bill relief and reinforce incentives for consumers to switch away from gas by making structural reforms to the way in which energy taxes and levies are allocated. Richard pointed to Denmark and the Netherlands, where the price ratio has already fallen dramatically; and to Germany, where reform has reduced the cripplingly high ratio to something less onerous. Check out the recording and slides here: https://lnkd.in/eigXFqyW where you can also sign up for our next event on strategies to boost consumer take-up of ToU tariffs and provision of flexibility services. #electrification #energyefficiency #energyflexibility
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📣 Starting soon! Interregional energy planning may look straightforward on paper. In practice, it requires regulators across jurisdictions to navigate different mandates, political realities, and market structures. Our first Regulatory Field Trip will explore how cooperation has evolved in practice, with perspectives from the Western United States and the European Union. Carl Linvill and Zsuzsanna Pató will share insights from real regulatory experiences and the decisions that shaped these efforts. 🕓 4:00 PM CET | 10:00 AM EST | 7:00 AM PST Join us: https://lnkd.in/eBvTK8b2
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