Electrification in Brandenburg is in full swing: heat pumps and wallboxes are being installed and charging infrastructure for e-cars is being created. According to the German Federal Grid Agency, industry is also facing an ever-increading demand for electricity as a result of ongoing electrification. The power grid in Oranienburg is struggling with this development and is overloaded. Therefore, the connection of further energy-intensive consumers has been stopped (Handelsblatt, 2024). Even though there are sometimes individual circumstances, the fundamental problem is not unique to Oranienburg. What can we do to deal with this side effect of the energy transition?
Expanding grid capacities is one solution, but it involves immense costs. The extent of grid expansion is defined in terms of possible simultaneity by the maximum assumed load in the grid, which may only occur in specific, short-term time windows. The costs incurred are in turn passed on to users in the form of ever higher grid charges.
We imagine the smart grid of the future, for which there is currently no regulation in Germany, differently. We support the idea of dynamic network charges. With the right incentives, grid utilization by participants (producers, consumers, prosumers) can be better coordinated in real time and potential peaks in the grid can be smoothed out efficiently. Dynamic peak load time windows can also achieve this effect. They could be notified in advance to participants, who adjust their power consumption accordingly and together relieve the grid. Especially in refrigeration and heating technology, this is possible due to a intelligent, predictive control. At the same time, additional storage and redundancies can be used to bridge these time windows.
What are the concrete steps to take as a company to adapt to this?
Grid congestion such as in Oranienburg could be avoided with a data-based smart grid. Consumers could also reduce their energy costs and increase energy efficiency. In this way, dynamic grid charges and peak load time windows could be implemented, which would also incentivize consumers to consume electricity in a grid-friendly, cost-efficient manner.
Even though that is not yet a reality: Companies can already benefit from energy management with AI today! Feel free to get in touch with us to find out more.
How will electricity prices on the exchange develop in the future? A recent study shows how renewable energy, rising gas and CO₂ prices and the nuclear phase-out are shaping the market. In this article, you can read about the challenges and opportunities this presents to industry.
The importance of energy efficiency for companies is constantly growing. Both environmental responsibility and cost savings have a decisive influence on the competitiveness of companies. In this article, we take a closer look at the most important facts of energy efficiency and show how companies can improve it.
Saving energy is becoming increasingly important for companies — not only for ecological, but also for economic reasons. In this blog article, we will show you why it is worthwhile to reduce energy consumption, what measures you can take and how an energy management system can help.
