Northern German states want to integrate sectors to utilise more green electricity

Germany’s northern states of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Schleswig-Holstein – both of which generate more renewable electricity than they can use within their territory – are aiming to be frontrunners in utilising excess renewable power in other sectors. In 2017, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania lost some 5,500 gigawatt-hours of renewable power that could not be used, the Institute for Climate Protection, Energy and Mobility (IKEM), that published a study on how to store this electricity, said in a press release. However, at the moment storage and power-to-x facilities are burdened by having to pay many taxes and levies twice. The study’s authors therefore suggest an experimental exemption from these payments for such installations which would be possible without establishing new subsidies. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania’s energy minister Christian Pegel said integrating different sectors such as transport and heating buildings with the power sector would make it easier to handle volatile energy sources such as wind and solar PV.

Shaping an integrated energy system (sector coupling) is key to making possible Germany’s energy transition towards an economy largely based on fluctuating renewables, but government policies to create a level playing field for the many different new technologies remain wanting.