Source - Ändring Uppdraget Svk Elområdesindelning (2026)

Government decision (Regeringsbeslut I:9) dated 2026-05-28, reference KN2026/01206. Issued by Klimat- och näringslivsdepartementet to Affärsverket svenska kraftnät. Signed by Peter Kullgren (minister); countersigned by Mikaela Sjöqvist. Four pages.

Amends the earlier government assignment KN2025/01072 (15 May 2025), which tasked Svenska kraftnät to analyze prerequisites for changing Sweden’s bidding zone division (elområdesindelning). The original deadline was 29 May 2026 — the day before this decision was issued.

Three changes to the original assignment

1. Add the Art. 14.7 structural congestion report

Svk must now also prepare a rapport om strukturell överbelastning (structural congestion report) pursuant to Article 14.7 of Regulation (EU) 2019/943. This is the formal EU-law document that initiates the binding bidding zone change process:

Svk files structural congestion report
    ↓
Ei (NRA) approves the report
    ↓ (triggers binding clock)
Sweden decides to review and change bidding zones: within 6 months
    ↓
Final decision on new zone configuration: within another 6 months
    (requires agreement with all affected member states)

The report must be grounded in the analyses from the existing assignment. By mandating this document now, the government is building the formal EU process trigger into Svk’s work from the outset.

2. Add holistic 5–10 year recommendation

Svk must make a helhetsperspektiv bedömning (holistic assessment) of which elområdesindelning is most appropriate for Sweden over the next 5–10 years. The assessment must be based on:

The original assessment criteria (driftsäkerhet, försörjningstrygghet, capacity calculation, market efficiency, zone stability/reliability, price impacts for Sweden and northern Europe, congestion income, financial electricity market function)
Expected prevalence of structural congestion

3. Add action plan toward 2 areas (if more than 2 proposed)

If the recommended zone configuration has more than 2 elområden, Svk must additionally deliver a handlingsplan — a concrete, timed action plan — for the measures Svk must take to make a 2-area division realizable. This requirement directly reflects the Tidöavtalet commitment:

“Av Tidöavtalet Överenskommelse för Sverige framgår att målet ska vara att skapa en bättre balans mellan elproduktion och elanvändning i olika delar av Sverige, för att därmed ge förutsättningar för stabilare och lägre elpriser så att Sverige på sikt och efter utredning kan bli ett samlat elprisområde.”

The government’s stated rationale for fewer areas: reduced congestion income (flaskhalsinkomster), lower costs for households and industry, higher liquidity on the electricity market, and facilitating electrification.

Extended deadline

Original deadline: 29 May 2026
New deadline: 29 January 2027

The government states it wants the process to proceed “i en snabbar takt” (at a faster pace) — hence expanding the scope rather than simply extending. The Art. 14.7 structural congestion report is needed regardless as a step in any formal zone reconfiguration, and building it into the current assignment avoids a separate later deliverable.

Relevance

Bidding Areas: directly updates the section on Svk’s Swedish-specific analysis; new deadline, expanded scope, formal EU process pathway
Svenska kraftnät: Svk’s government assignment extended and significantly expanded
Ei: named as the NRA that must approve the Art. 14.7 structural congestion report
Regulatory Calendar: entry for Svk bidding zone analysis moved from 29 May 2026 to 29 January 2027