The EU power system is adapting fast to meet Europe's renewables target. On 4 May 2016 the Member States gave a favourable opinion on the Draft Regulation establishing a guideline on electricity transmission system operation – the System Operation Guideline. It sets out harmonised rules on how to operate the grid to ensure security of supply with more and more renewables. It also formalises Regional Service Coordinators, RSCs, which will cover the whole of Europe by end 2017. The Nordic RSC was kicked off today at a meeting in Copenhagen.

"These are really exciting times for the European grid. We drafted 150 pages of rules that streamline across Europe state-of-the-art operational rules supporting more market integration and more renewable energy", commented Bente Hagem, Chair of the ENTSO-E Board. "That includes the rolling out of Regional Service Coordinators that are part of a long tradition of regional cooperation among transmission system operators".

The System Operation Guideline is the 6th network code/guideline drafted by ENTSO-E and adopted by Member States in the European Union's Comitology process. "It is the most voluminous code so far as it merges three original operational codes into one. Once turned into a binding EU regulation, assuming Council and Parliament do not object, all European TSOs will apply best practice from all over Europe", added Konstantin Staschus, Secretary-General of ENTSO-E.

"Before the guideline was even put to vote, TSOs and ENTSO-E committed to extend the scope of RSCs and make all consumers in Europe benefit from a cleaner, more reliable and cost-efficient grid. We know that with the internal electricity market and the energy transition there is a need to step up regional cooperation. And we are progressing as far as legal and regulatory limits allow. The start today of the discussions that will lead to the creation of a Nordic RSC by end 2017 proves that we are serious about this", concludes Peder Andreasen, President of ENTSO-E.

​​The first RSC was established in 2008 and now there are 3 RSCs in operation namely: Coreso, TSC and SCC. Two more RSCs are expected to be providing services to TSOs by the end of 2017 called Baltic and South East Europe. RSCs offer an additional regional view to complement the national TSOs own data leading to more security, more efficiency and economies of scale.