The numerous similarities between the Polish and French operators – for example in terms of the scale of their operations, their goals, and the challenges of green transformation – made it a natural step to establish cooperation between the companies. The two companies made their first contacts back in 2017, when the vision of a green transformation involving gas distribution system operators was in its initial stages in the European regulatory system.

“I believe that this cooperation and exchange of good practices will be a very important stimulus for the development of both companies. In the coming months, we will work hard together to translate the signed memorandum into concrete actions. It will be crucial for us to cooperate on new projects and innovations, especially in the context of finding synergies between natural gas and renewable energy sources”, said Robert Więckowski, Chairman of the Management Board of Polska Spółka Gazownictwa. 

GRDF, like Polska Spółka Gazownictwa, manages more than 200,000 km of distribution network. The French distributor is heavily involved in the development of low-emission transportation based on the use of biomethane.

“PSG and GRDF as distributors are not competitors but partners. I'm sure we can learn a lot from each other by sharing our experience. We have already identified topics of priority in which we will cooperate. These include making it easier and faster to inject more and more renewable gases into our networks, as well as implementing innovations such as smart gas meters”, said Laurence Poirier-Dietz, CEO of GRDF.

Employees of both companies have already had the opportunity to share knowledge and experience during working meetings held in Poland and France. Last year, at the invitation of GRDF, representatives of Polska Spółka Gazownictwa participated in a workshop on building and developing the biomethane market and smart metering. For more than a year, the two operators have also been making a concerted effort to relax the methane regulation.