European electricity-grid reforms could open a new revenue stream for equipment that helps maintain system stability as inverter-connected resources become more prevalent. At an energy conference in Athens on October 22, Miguel Ochoa, Europe Grid Director at SIGENERGY, said regulatory uncertainty was slowing the deployment of technologies designed for this purpose. He identified voltage regulation as a major challenge and pointed to grid-forming technology as a potential solution.
The opportunity goes beyond electricity sales and conventional balancing energy. Equipment able to provide voltage support, synthetic inertia, reactive power and other stability services may gain commercial value as regulators set more detailed technical requirements and system operators develop procurement mechanisms. For developers, engineering contractors and infrastructure investors in Southeast Europe, the changes could affect equipment procurement, grid-connection compliance and contractual revenues.
Stability services extend beyond energy and balancing
Conventional electricity-market revenue is largely linked to delivered energy, available capacity and frequency-balancing services. But networks also need technical capabilities that cannot be measured simply by the volume of electricity sold. Voltage stability partly depends on connected equipment’s ability to absorb or inject reactive power, while frequency stability requires a rapid response when generation and consumption become unbalanced.
Inertia and other fast-response characteristics help limit how quickly frequency changes after a disturbance. Historically, synchronous generators at large power plants provided many of these functions naturally or through established controls. As electricity systems rely more heavily on inverter-connected technologies, engineered control systems and appropriately designed equipment must increasingly supply the required services.
Grid-forming inverters can contribute to this shift. Unlike conventional grid-following inverters, which typically synchronise with an existing grid-voltage waveform, grid-forming equipment can control its own voltage waveform and respond rapidly to changing electrical conditions. Depending on its design and available energy resources, it may support system strength, fast active-power response and local voltage stability.
Not every grid-forming device can provide every stability service, and the capabilities of different products are not interchangeable. Even so, the technology presents opportunities for equipment manufacturers, engineering companies and electricity-asset owners.
RfG revision would update technical requirements
The European Union is preparing revisions to the Requirements for Generators network code, known as RfG 2.0, to update technical standards for modern generation and storage systems. The European Commission published a draft revision on July 8, 2026, and opened a consultation that closed on August 25. The proposed framework addresses converter-connected generation, electricity storage and emerging technologies, including grid-forming capability.
The European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) published detailed technical guidance on grid-forming requirements in November 2025. The proposed revised code would strengthen the framework for defining how eligible installations must perform during disturbances and interact with electricity networks. The final requirements have not yet entered into force.
At the Athens conference, Ochoa said the revised European regulation could be issued in English in February 2027, with other language versions following by May. This is a reported expectation, not a confirmed implementation date. The timetable matters because developers are choosing equipment for projects expected to operate for decades.
If future technical requirements differ from those in current procurement contracts, developers could face additional engineering costs or equipment modifications. Installations designed with sufficiently advanced capabilities could, by contrast, be better positioned to meet future grid requirements. The financial consequences will depend on national implementation, the treatment of existing installations and whether additional capabilities qualify for remuneration.
Germany has begun procuring inertia services
The commercial potential is already being tested. On January 22, 2026, Germany’s transmission system operators began market-based procurement of instantaneous reserve, a service intended to support local grid stability by responding rapidly to active-power imbalances. Qualified resources, including suitable synchronous equipment and grid-forming converters, can provide defined inertia-related services under the framework.
Remuneration uses a fixed-price mechanism that accounts for product type, location and service availability. The procurement distinguishes between positive and negative response products, as well as different availability requirements. Germany’s approach shows how technical stability functions can be organised as standardised commercial services.
The location and technical performance of an installation matter because an asset supporting stability in one area cannot necessarily provide equal value at every transmission-network connection point. Revenue depends on where the service is needed, which technical standards apply and how the system operator procures it. Germany’s framework does not mean comparable markets are already operating throughout Southeast Europe, but it offers regulators and transmission operators a practical example to consider.
Technical and regulatory questions for Southeast Europe
The issues are relevant to Greece, Romania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Slovenia, where transmission and distribution operators must accommodate changing generation and consumption technologies. Technical standards and procurement arrangements also matter in Serbia and Montenegro, where transmission requirements and regulatory alignment will affect the bankability of future investments.
In Greece, IPTO will need to assess how a growing share of inverter-based resources affects system stability and grid operation. Transelectrica faces similar questions in Romania regarding the technical characteristics and control capabilities of connected installations. In Croatia, HOPS and distribution-system operators will need to consider how advanced grid-support functions can be reflected in operational and connection requirements.
Serbia’s legal framework already recognises non-frequency ancillary services and provides for their procurement through transparent, non-discriminatory and market-based procedures, subject to regulatory conditions and possible exceptions. This provides a potential regulatory basis for more clearly defined technical services. However, legal recognition is not the same as an established procurement market offering predictable revenues.
Developing such services commercially requires system operators to identify specific needs, define technical products and establish qualification and payment arrangements. The October discussions in Greece highlighted that the necessary technical and regulatory arrangements remain unresolved in parts of Southeast Europe.
Testing and contracts determine commercial value
The transition also affects equipment suppliers, independent engineers and project supervisors. A manufacturer’s specifications alone cannot establish an installation’s grid-forming performance; investors and system operators need evidence of how it performs under defined electrical conditions. This may require power-system studies, dynamic simulation models, protection coordination, inverter-control settings, site-acceptance tests and measurements during commissioning.
For existing installations, determining whether advanced functions can be enabled may require a detailed review of hardware capability, software, contractual warranties and grid-code obligations. A key distinction is whether a technical capability is mandatory for compliance or is an optional commercial service. A system operator may require specified reactive-power capability as a condition of connection, but that requirement does not automatically entitle the installation to additional revenue.
Commercial value arises when a qualifying service is separately remunerated under applicable rules or contracts. For lenders and investors, distinguishing compliance obligations from paid services helps prevent speculative stability-service revenue from being included prematurely in financial models. Independent technical assessment can also play a role when new services are introduced.
Advanced capabilities may affect project decisions
As grid-forming requirements develop, investors may need to distinguish equipment that meets minimum connection obligations from installations capable of providing additional contracted stability services. That difference could influence procurement strategies, acquisition due diligence and long-term operational planning. A project with documented grid-forming capability, validated dynamic models and suitable controls may be easier to adapt to changing technical standards.
Any valuation premium would depend on demonstrable avoided costs, greater operational certainty or additional contracted revenue. Developers must also consider whether providing a stability service imposes operating restrictions or reduces the ability to earn revenue elsewhere. Contracts will need to address availability, technical performance, service priority, liability and the interaction between different operational obligations.
New services could increase demand for specialist engineering, testing, independent certification and long-term technical supervision. These activities are commercially distinct from building conventional electricity-generation capacity. The next commercial opportunity will depend on proving that an asset can provide a specific service where it is needed, under a contract that makes its technical capability financially valuable.
Electricity assets are increasingly assessed not only by installed megawatts and expected generation, but also by their contribution to stable network operation. The pace of commercial development will vary by country, depending on how quickly transmission operators identify system needs and establish procurement arrangements. Southeast European developers need to understand future technical obligations before committing to long-term equipment contracts, while regulators and system operators must distinguish network-security requirements from additional services that warrant competitive remuneration.
Germany’s paid inertia procurement demonstrates that such markets can operate. The developments also point to a new phase in Southeast Europe’s electricity industry, where potential sources of value extend beyond producing, storing and trading electricity to include securing infrastructure for digital customers, monetising controllable consumption and delivering measurable technical services to system operators. The decisive investment distinction is whether those capabilities can be converted into enforceable contracts and predictable cash flows.