In regions particularly affected by the energy transition – such as the grid area of MITNETZ STROM – the average share of renewable energies (RE) is already more than 100 percent of end consumer sales. Congestion management measures are necessary almost daily – costs for grid expansion and congestion management are high.

Consumer flexibility is increasing, but the grid charging system prevents its use to relieve grid stress. Shifting consumption load in situations with particularly high feed-in from RE plants and simultaneous relief of the grid would not be rewarded for the consumer – although the grid is relieved.

For this reason, MITNETZ and E-Bridge have developed a pragmatic approach of time-variable grid tariffs that provides incentives to relieve the grid so that costs are saved from the customer’s perspective and the individual carbon footprint is reduced.

The idea: Time-variable network tariffs reflect the current network load and thus stimulate flexible power consumption to relieve the network. For example, a particularly low tariff applies when the amount of electricity fed into the grid is too high, because this allows the grid to be relieved by load shifting. The benefits are high: Above all, end customers profit from lower electricity prices and a smaller carbon footprint. Better utilization of the network infrastructure is achieved, unnecessary construction measures are avoided, and the regional use of renewable energies is promoted.

In implementation, the grid operator transmits time-variable grid tariffs and available grid capacities via interfaces (reservation system). An energy management system ensures demand-based and fully automatic optimization – advantage: direct control by the grid operator is not necessary. Time-variable network tariffs can be embedded in the existing system and form a very good preventive supplement to the design of § 14 a EnWG as a curative congestion management measure.

The feasibility of the concept has already been demonstrated in a pilot application by MITNETZ STROM. In the next step, the experts recommend an evolutionary introduction by network operators. Legal hurdles for this could not be identified.

The detailed study (German language only) is available via the following link: