The transmission system operator 50 Hertz warns of a years-long blockade of grid connections for new industrial businesses due to the boom in large battery storage. Stefan Kapferer, CEO, told Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (Saturday editions) that the battery companies proceeded very professionally with their applications for grid connections. Industrial businesses often fell behind because they do not yet know their future requirements. According to Kapferer, there is an increasing risk that storage projects will not be realized, but grid connections will still be reserved and built in substations for them. The possible consequence would be that connections for new industrial locations, especially in Eastern Germany, would be missing for years. Alone at 50 Hertz, there are currently around 160 high-maturity applications for battery storage projects. Nationwide, grid operators have already committed to connection services of more than 100 gigawatts – for comparison: the maximum demand in the entire German power network is approximately 80 gigawatts. The head of 50 Hertz calls for a change in the legal rules to be able to prioritize industrial companies when allocating grid connections. “The emergency brake must be pulled,” according to Kapferer. The federal government must implement this quickly in the planned grid package. Large battery storage systems are considered a central component of the energy transition. They balance the fluctuating supply of wind and solar energy by taking in power from wind and solar plants when it is produced in excess and feeding it into the grid when power prices are high due to scarcity.
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