The smart grid in Georgian law
In international practice the smart grid is often associated with a dedicated strategic programme. Georgia has no separate smart grid act — this must be said plainly. What exists is three interconnected regimes embedded in the Law on Energy: the planning of network development (the plans of the transmission and distribution networks), the principle of promoting smart technologies, and the encouragement, within supply-security measures, of new technologies — demand management, smart metering and distributed generation. This page explains how these three links work together.
The principled foundation
Among the general principles of regulation of energy activity, the law directly provides for the promotion of the use of smart and environmentally safe technologies in the operation of the system. This means that for the regulator smart technologies are not an end but a means — an instrument for increasing efficiency and reducing negative impact on the environment. The same principles include increasing the efficiency of energy activity and sustainable development, the effective use of interconnector capacities and diversification on energy markets.
The ten-year transmission network plan
The transmission system operator annually elaborates and updates the ten-year transmission network development plan for the next 10 calendar years, based on existing and forecast supply and demand indicators. The plan contains information on existing and forecast demand and supply, on domestic forecast generation and cross-border flows, on the main infrastructure to be built or improved over the next 10 years, on decided investments and those to be implemented over the next 3 years, on specific deadlines, and — importantly — on the integration into the network of new generation objects, including renewable sources.
The procedure is also defined: after consultations with stakeholders, the draft plan is submitted to the ministry and the commission no later than 1 October of the relevant year; the commission examines the draft and submits its remarks to the ministry within 2 months of receipt; the ministry, with the government's consent, ensures approval of the plan no later than the end of the relevant year. From the smart grid perspective, this plan is precisely the document where investments in digital and intelligent infrastructure must be reflected.
Investment discipline is also embedded in the law: if the transmission system operator fails to implement an investment planned by the ten-year plan for the next three years (save where caused by independent, insurmountable reasons), the commission, in agreement with the government where necessary, adopts one of the following measures: it demands the implementation of the investment, holds an open tender to select an interested investor, or instructs the operator to increase its capital with the involvement of investors. Such investors may not, however, be companies engaged in generation, supply or trading — the measure protects the independence of the transmission sphere.