Europe launches pan-European grid capacity map for transmission and distribution

A pan-European digital platform went live on 23 May 2026, mapping available hosting capacity across both transmission and distribution networks in Europe, per pv magazine. The platform targets the information asymmetry that has slowed connection decisions for generators and storage developers: until now, granular capacity data has been fragmented across national TSOs and DSOs with no common interface.

The same week, Germany's Bundesnetzagentur confirmed electricity grid reserve capacity requirements on 22 May 2026. The regulator's confirmation locks in the reserve volumes that underpin system adequacy planning for the German bidding zone. The figure is watched closely by balancing market participants and capacity traders.

The timing of both announcements reflects a broader push by European regulators and grid bodies to reduce connection queue uncertainty. Grid connection backlogs have been a leading constraint on renewable build-out across France, Germany, Poland, and the Iberian Peninsula. A single capacity map does not remove those backlogs, but it gives developers and investors a common reference point for site screening and NTC planning.

No quantitative capacity figures from the new platform were available in the published summary at time of writing. Further detail is expected as national TSOs and DSOs onboard data.