Stakeholder dialogues

For the two most important projects in Wallonia and Flanders, Elia started an early participation process with civil society and some regional experts. The objective was to define the best project (responding to environment, economic and agricultural interests) and collect their opinion based on their different expertise. These processes are still ongoing and include now more representative parties and organizations. Specific reports on technology options for the project were delivered. For the Flanders project, a participative approach was set up with a project facilitator, a group of independent experts, representatives of citizens, municipalities and civil society in order to answer all questions and scenario’s proposed by the local communities.

Elia communicates and cooperates transparently throughout the entire development process. In addition to the legally required preliminary public information meetings in the context of the development of this type of project, we organize a series of “info-markets”, which are information sessions for local residents. During 2020, 8 information sessions linked to the official permit process were organised to inform more than 11,000 people. These information moments were supported by several communication tools: invitation letters, citizen’s information pack, brochures, flyers and roll-ups for the paper part; Press conferences and press releases; digital newsletters, Facebook posts, didactic videos; telephone hotlines with or without appointment and mailbox provision.

In 2020, Elia collaborated with the University of Liège and the ILVO16 and the Belgian professional associations of farmers on a literature review study to better understand the impact of high voltage infrastructure on agriculture. Moreover, we developed a public reference framework to mitigate the impact of the realization of new infrastructure projects.

16 Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food

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5.7.3 Stakeholder dialogues

GRI 102-21, GRI 102-44

Communication events

Despite the special circumstances in 2020, the dialogue between the Elia group and the group’sstakeholders continued. Communication options were expanded to include virtual and hybrid events, and hygiene guidelines were established for the various occasions. The Elia Group Stakeholder Day was held for the first time as a hybrid, with simultaneous events in Berlin and Brussels. The programme included panel discussions and presentations. Around 300 guests from Germany and Belgium took part virtually.

The most important event was held on Monday 9 November, system operators Elia and Amprion inaugurated ALEGrO, the first electricity interconnector between Belgium and Germany. The livestreamed event took place in the City Hall of the German city of Aachen and was attended, either in person or digitally, by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, North Rhine-Westphalia Minister- President Armin Laschet and Belgian Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten. Additionally to this main event, another nine events were held during this particular year: stakeholder’s events, press conferences and participation to fairs. Some were physical or digital and other were a hybrid version.

Customer satisfaction survey

Elia regularly measures the customer satisfaction level of its key stakeholders (distribution system operators, grid users, producers, access responsible parties, Users’ Group, etc.). The main objective of these surveys is to provide an overview of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) related to service quality and their evolution over time. In 2020, customer surveys were conducted within Elia .

250 stakeholders took part in the biennial survey. The KPIs measured by the Elia Satisfaction Index reflect how stakeholders evaluate the Elia’s products and services in general. The Customer Effort Score reflects the ease of doing business with Elia, the customer satisfaction regards account management and image, etc. The overall aim is to identify our strengths and weaknesses among the different stakeholders in order to further optimize the customer relationship. Elia scored 69% for the Satisfaction Index, reflecting the high quality of products and services. The majority of the stakeholders still describe collaboration with Elia as “easy”.

Elia Transmission Belgium Users’ Group

Elia regularly organises Users’ Group meetings and working groups. The Users’ Group provides a platform that allows Elia to maintain an ongoing dialogue with its main customers and partners. Every year, about four Users’ Group plenary meetings are scheduled to inform market participants and stakeholders about important and strategic topics related to our business.