Estonia’s Ministry of Climate has submitted a draft amendment to the Electricity Market Act for approval, aiming to make connection costs for both renewable energy producers and large consumers more predictable and streamline the connection process.
“Estonia’s goal is to generate all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030. Achieving this requires a fast and clearly planned development of renewable energy,” stated Climate Minister Yoko Alender. “With the proposed law change, producers and consumers will immediately know the costs associated with connecting to the grid. This not only accelerates the process but also reduces electricity prices. For instance, the connection could cost a large consumer up to 14 million euros less.”
The amendment allows the grid operator to create a corresponding pricing structure, which will take effect after approval from the Competition Authority. This pricing structure will apply to the existing main network. Current forecasts estimate the new connection fee to be 44,000 euros per megavolt-ampere (effectively, megawatt). A consistent national approach based on a pricing list will facilitate the development of renewable energy in optimal locations for building production capacities. This change also supports regional development and benefits electricity consumers, as an increase in renewable energy production is expected to lower electricity prices. In areas lacking a core network, the existing cost-based connection pricing will still apply.
As a result of this legislative change, connections for both large consumers and electricity producers could become significantly more affordable. For example, connecting a 50-megawatt consumption site to the Paljassaare substation in Harju County could be approximately 14 million euros cheaper than current costs. Similarly, connecting 50 MVA of electricity production to the Aruküla substation in Harju County would be about 10 million euros cheaper than the current expense under the planned changes. The exact changes will be disclosed once the new pricing structure is established. Current connection costs can be checked on the Elering free connection capacity application at Elering.
In addition to clarifying connection fees, the draft also extends the maximum length of direct lines between electricity producers and consumers. This change allows for direct consumption from the producer at reduced costs compared to the network fee. Currently, direct lines can be built up to 6 kilometres; after the amendment, this limit will increase to 15 kilometres.
“This change presents new opportunities for both electricity producers and energy-intensive industries to achieve lower final prices,” the minister added.
The bill empowers the transmission system operator to proactively develop the network in areas where future renewable electricity production is anticipated. This will facilitate and expedite the connection of new producers and consumers to the grid. The pricing structure based on this amendment is expected to be implemented at the beginning of 2026.