- Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) has proven to be a useful tool to support the economic appraisal of important projects in many sectors. In the energy domain, a single CBA method has been proposed at EU level to evaluate and compare electricity transmission and storage projects from different countries, which is unprecedented anywhere in the world. - The objective of the 10th report of THINK has been to advise the European Commission (DG Energy) on the development of this method in the context of the Energy Infrastructure Package. This brief is derived from that report. We provide recommendations for the scope of the analysis as well as the calculation of the net benefit. We also discuss how the method can be used to rank projects. - Regarding the scope of the analysis, our recommendations are: (1) interaction between projects must be taken into account in the project and baseline definition; (2) data consistency and quality should be ensured; (3) the conventional time horizon is 20-25 years; (4) CBA should concentrate on a reduced list of effects and those should be monetized; and (5) distributional concerns should not be addressed in the calculation of net benefits. - Regarding the calculation of the net benefit, our recommendations are: (6) infrastructure costs need to be disaggregated; (7) the model used to monetize the production cost savings and gross consumer surplus needs to be explicitly stated; (8) a common discount factor should be used for all projects; and (9) a stochastic approach that is consistent with the Energy Roadmap 2050 should be used to address uncertainty. - Regarding the ranking of projects, our recommendation is: (10) the ranking should be primarily based on the monetized net benefit. - ENTSO-E has already proposed a draft method for electricity projects. We will analyse to what extent this method is in line with our recommendations and will conclude that it is an important step in the right direction. However, improvements could still be made, as proposed in this brief.
The Brief explores pathways to promote a sustainable agricultural trade regime for the EU. We identify three challenges and propose three potential paths forward. We discuss potential implications of the [...]
The rewable energy resources within EU27 are highly dominated by wind and solar energy delivering electricity as output. As electrification is the most efficient way to deliver the energy services [...]
Manufacturing firms in the EU face the double challenge of decarbonisation and (international) competitive pressure. Based on the key findings of the 2024 EIB investment survey and considering the economic [...]
Regulation 1370/2007, as amended by the Fourth Railway Package, set the date of 25 December 2023 for the opening to competition of services subject to public service obligations. As opposed [...]
This policy brief contends that a new approach to Long Term Contracts (LTCs) in European competition policy based on new facts, new realities and a revised reasoning must be urgently [...]
In the North Seas region, a coalition of 9 countries expressed the ambition to quadruple their offshore wind capacity from 30 GW to 120 GW by 2030, and to then [...]
Join our community
To meet, discuss and learn in the channel that suits you best.
We use cookies to help personalise content and provide a better experience. By clicking Accept all, you agree to this, as outlined in our Cookie Policy. To change preferences or withdraw consent, please update your Cookie Preferences.
Read it on Cadmus Download in open access
