Under the ICER platform, energy regulators cooperate within ICER through Virtual Working Groups (VWGs).
From 2009-2015, ICER was structured along four Virtual Working Groups: Security of Supply, Climate Change, Competition and Affordability, and Good Regulatory Practices. For the 2015-2018 period, the Working Groups were refocused on the roles and challenges that regulators face in evolving market situations, as follows: Electricity (VWG1), Gas and Other Fuels (VWG2), and Technology and Innovation (VWG3). As of August 2023, VWG1 and VWG2 have concluded.
Activities among members of the VWGs may include:
- Workshops on specific issues (alone or jointly with collaborating stakeholder’s organizations)
- Webinars by regulatory experts
- Development of reports
- Specific surveys
- Data gathering
- Side events during regional regulatory association conferences
Technology and Innovation Virtual Working Group
Chair: Carolyn Calwell, Chief Corporate Services Officer & General Counsel at Ontario Energy Board
Co-Chair: Rashmi Somasekharan, Deputy Chief (Regulatory Affairs) at CERC
Potential issues to be covered include the challenges and opportunities associated with:
- Distributed energy resources, including renewables and storage
- Cyber-security
- Smart grids
- Electric vehicles
- The energy transition and electrification of economies
- Other emerging issues
Members: 40
Hydrogen Virtual Working Group
Chair: Noura Hajri (MEDREG)
Potential issues to be covered include the challenges and opportunities associated with:
- Green Hydrogen Production
- Infrastructure Development for Green Hydrogen
- Economic Viability and Market Integration
- Policy and Regulatory Frameworks
- International Collaboration and Trade
- Green Hydrogen Transportation
- Energy Storage and Grid Stability
- Green Hydrogen in Industrial Processes
VWG1: Electricity (concluded 2023)
Co-Chair: José Venegas
Potential issues covered:
- Integration of regional markets
- Development of capacity markets
- Wholesale & retail competition
- Expansion of coverage: policies and regulatory mechanisms
- The role of regulators in reliability
- Nuclear energy issues
Members: 58
VWG2: Gas and Other Fuels (concluded 2023)
Chair: Bagdagul Kaya Caner, LL. M.
Co-Chair: Karem Hanafy Mahmoud Mohamed.
Potential issues covered:
- Integration of regional markets
- Wholesale & retail competition
- Expansion of coverage: policies and regulatory mechanisms
- Climate change challenges on natural gas
- The role of regulators in safety and quality issues
- Biofuels
- LPG and other fossil fuels
Members: 40