Climate change and critical infrastructure – floods

This study investigates the change in the level of risk to critical infrastructure due to the impact of climate change on the frequency and severity of floods in Europe. This focuses on the power grid to demonstrate the methodology. The consideration of the power outage substantially changes the estimated losses from the flood scenario. The economic losses due to the interruption of the daily economic activity are 3 to 5 times greater if the power outage outside the inundated area is taken into consideration. The cost of transmission asset repairs far outweighs the daily economic losses, and amounts to 95-98% of the total cost.