As the EU shifts away from the traditional energy system and heads towards a decentralised, digitalised and decarbonised transition, new and smart solutions are required to manage the ever-increasing variable generation mix whilst maintaining affordability and security of supply. Demand-side flexibility (DSF), the ability of customers to change their consumption and generation patterns based on external signals, is a crucial element in achieving these goals. 

With the current geopolitical events causing skyrocketing energy prices and supply risk disruptions, the need to empower end-users to play an active part in securing and decarbonising the EU energy system is gaining traction in EU strategies and policies. However, the activation of consumers’ flexibility still faces regulatory barriers, notably due to the delayed implementation by Member States of the Electricity Market Design. Furthermore, DSF still lacks visibility as a reliable, efficient and climatefriendly solution because its potential has never been systematically quantified. This results in DSF being a frequently overlooked solution in policy decisions, hindering its potential in accelerating the cost-efficient clean energy transition. 

In order to fill this gap, smartEn – Smart Energy Europe, commissioned an expert study from DNV to quantify the potential benefits of a full deployment of DSF in the EU by 2030. This DNV study intends to inform policy decisions on how to achieve a 55% GHG reduction by 2030 in a cost-efficient way for both the whole energy system and consumers.