Towards a “climate protection grid” by 2030

How?

• Grid expansion: a strong transmission grid is a prerequisite for regional power balancing across Europe. The expansion of distribution grids can help avoid local grid constraints and with the integration of new generators and consumers.
• Capabilities which so far have been provided by large power plants, must be provided in the future by renewable energy plants, storage facilities and flexible consumers. It is important to act early: the capabilities which are not defined in the technical rules will not be available at a later point and even will lead to plants being retrofitted at great expense. This is an important factor when considering more than 10 million decentralized generators, storage facilities and flexible loads coming onto the system in the future. The capabilities must be defined as well as the plants that provide them.
• The cooperation between network operators must be standardised.

The regulatory framework must be developed according to the system

• It is still not determined which capabilities for the system are to be procured and remunerated through the market, which ones are to be promoted through incentives and which ones are to become mandatory as minimum technical requirements defined in the Technical Connection Rules.
• Technology and regulatory frameworks must be developed hand in hand to accelerate the system transformation.
• The roles for players in the grid, exceptions to the requirements and specifications for grid integration of new technologies must be defined in advance. The required capabilities for operation with 80% renewables must be built up in advance, thus minimizing costly retrofits. There should be no economic incentives to fall short of minimum technical requirements.

One opportunity is to utilize the capabilities of all customers to support the system. This also entails the risk that actors and market mechanisms could be bundled together to become critical to system operation. The impact of market behaviour and simultaneity effects on the grid is increasing. Furthermore, consumption such as e-mobility charging and heating, as well as weather-dependent generation, have a direct impact on the grid.

How?

The energy grids must be digitalised to enable a comprehensive monitoring of grid states and to allow the application of targeted remedial actions in critical grid situations. The challenge is to develop solutions for all phases of grid operation despite the complexity of the system which make the overall system safer and support grid operation and those responsible for it.

• Transparency and observability: energy grids must be digitalised and equipped with sensors and actuators to monitor grid states throughout the network and to control the demand for and supply of electricity to end customers through targeted measures during critical grid situations.
• The foundations must be laid for automated grid operation and assistance systems.
• Concepts and standards for IT security in the distributed power system must be further developed.

How?

• Roll out a systematic observation and evaluation of supply interruptions and perturbations in order to take immediate action.
• Develop quality standards and training for installation of underground power lines.
• Create a concept for crisis and risk management to allow for quick and appropriate measures during a crisis situation.
• Make a concrete plan for the availability of gas-fired power plants during a blackout situation.
• Continue developing the crisis resource register.

A central element for this is the smart metering system, which collects data at many grid connection points and allows for applications, such as heat pumps, wallboxes, generators or home storage units, to be activated for the energy transition through a targeted control strategy.

How?

The technology for the smart metering infrastructure is in place and the smart meter rollout is underway. However, it remains to be seen which actors have which rights and obligations and what incentives will be created for end customers to participate in the energy transition. So far, only a few customer installations are connected via smart metering systems and can therefore be controlled. There is still a lack of incentives for flexibilisation through investments in storage, load control or energy management systems, as well as their corresponding tariff models and business models. The appropriate basis is missing in the regulatory framework and market processes and are therefore failing to make flexibility through load management or the use of variable tariff systems attractive for end customers.

Two aspects must be observed in this context:

• The market must be organised to provide incentives for flexibility and necessary investments in control and management systems. Specifically, the following questions need to be answered: what are the incentives for supporting the system and demand side flexibility? How will investments in guaranteed capacity for storage, electric vehicles, PV systems or “flexsumers” pay off? How can variable tariffs offer the highest possible incentives for supporting the system? Different incentives and individual measures must be systemically embedded in an overall concept to satisfy the justified requirements of end customers, the power grid and suppliers/service providers.
• As many plants as possible should become an active part of the energy system via the market. Market design must be continuously developed for this purpose. It must be suitable for an agile transformation of the energy systems towards climate neutrality with the highest priority being security of supply. In critical situations customer plants must be able to support the grid, to react appropriately during grid constraints or overloads and to (pro)actively counteract these.

The roles and rules for actors in the system must be clear to allow as many customers as possible to become an active part of the energy system facilitated through the market. The participation must be worthwhile for customers and the priority of signals in critical situations must be defined.

How?

• By approaching solutions holistically and considering the interests of all stakeholders. Future rights and obligations of all stakeholders must be clear and system security and transparency of the measures must be ensured. Rules for grid operation and requirements for technology must be coordinated with the security requirements of the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI), the calibration authorities and the market. Customer benefit and convenience (or simplicity) are critical to success. We must find technical solutions that also enable trading companies and system providers to easily carry out standardised installations. In order for this to happen quickly, a uniform roadmap is needed to complement the BMWK/BSI step-by-step plan, in which, among other things, targets and measures are updated in the regulatory framework.
• By developing a coordination function in the regulatory framework. For access to flexibility by the different market participants, VDE FNN has developed a practical model for the coordination function, which must be included in the BSI plan. This ensures that, under normal circumstances, customers and service providers are free to decide on the control of the system. However, it must be possible to prioritise access to those customers who are useful to the grid in order to avoid critical situations. This makes it clear, who has which task and when and what happens in critical situations. This function is important for market integration and security of supply but has not still been integrated into the regulatory framework and the BMWK/BSI step-by-step plan.

How?

Each organization has developed standards: BSI for interoperability and security for communications in the smart metering system, VDE FNN for specifications, processes and rules for rollout and metering point operation and VDE DKE for the electrotechnical interfaces and products (also internationally through IEC). The following examples shows where standards can facilitate implementation:

• Specifications for electricity meters, gateways and the control box (VDE FNN specifications, in German)
• Preparation and implementation of the rollout: electronic delivery note and guidelines for rollout processes, security of logistic chains (VDE FNN Guidelines, in German) and defined micro processes
• Cross-company interoperability testing (in German) and safety certification
• Metering point operation, proof of conformity, sampling procedures
• Protection profiles define security requirements (BSI-CC-PP)
• Security for system units for the use of the intelligent metering system (BSI TR 03109-5)
• Information exchange on the customer installation (e.g. VDE-AR-E 2829-6, e.g. EEBUS)
• Energy management system for charging stations (e.g. VDE-AR-E 2122-1000)
• Protection and control technology protocol for the FNN control box (e.g. IEC 61850)

How?

Grid operators are already doing a lot for the environment and the climate:

• Grid operators focus on the thoughtful use of resources through the operation of long-standing assets. Extending the shelf life of clothing and consumer products is a current subject of lively public debate. In grid operation, extending the service life is common practice. Operating resources are in use for 40 or more years. This is not only sustainable, but also reduces the number of construction sites, especially in urban areas, and thus protects the environment. New materials which are environmentally friendly and more durable offer additional potential. The goal is to use materials which are produced from sustainable raw materials considering energy efficiency, which can be used for a long time, and which can be reused in the future through recycling and disposed in an environmentally friendly way.
• A new and particularly interesting development is that extremely durable and reliable resources are now being linked with short-lived digital elements in the network. This is where disruption meets longevity.
• Grid operators use climate-friendly innovations and products. For example, they use satellites and drones for sustainable route management or rely on SF6-free switchgear.
• The integration of a large number of renewable energy plants ensures a sustainable power supply. The importance of individual plants is decreasing, which is leading to an increase in the effectiveness and interaction of all plants.
• Grid operators pilot innovations on "sustainable resources" for grid operation.
• In the long term we should be able to quantify and regulate climate protection and sustainability. In order to install long-lasting, sustainable assets in the grid, planning security and corresponding support and subsidies are needed. The current regulatory framework lacks sustainability criteria for grid technology and grid operation.