Hydropower almost completely exhausted.
Wind power actually slowed down.
Bayernwerk therefore relies on photovoltaics.
Your boss Westphal explains the Bavarian energy transition.
Munich - Green electricity is on the rise.
Even in conventional tariffs, the proportion that comes from renewable energies is now over 50 percent.
We spoke to the CEO of Bayernwerk AG, Egon Westphal, about the state of the energy transition in Bavaria, the expansion of the grid and the challenge of e-mobility.
What will the Bavarian energy supply look like in ten years?
Westphal:
We have already connected 300,000 renewable energy sources to our network in the Bayernwerk network, which - averaged over the year - generate 70 percent of the electricity consumed.
We imagine it to be like this in 2030: The rural communities will generate a lot of electricity from their open spaces - primarily from solar systems.
With the surpluses, they then feed power sinks with high consumption, i.e. cities and industrial parks.
The petals in the surrounding area therefore supply the calyx in the center.
That is why we call the concept flower power.
We are thus creating a supply from green energies in the region.
But can the energy-intensive Bavarian industry really do without coal and nuclear power?
Westphal:
The principle is thought from the bottom up. In the low and medium voltage range - i.e. in regional supply - private households, for example, should be supplied with electricity that is generated regionally. This will work very well in the area of Bavaria. That will not be enough for the energy-intensive Bavarian industry. We use electricity from other parts of Germany. And if that is still not enough, we will access European electricity, which will come to us, for example, via the Südostlink high-voltage road. This can also be used to supply customers such as the Bavarian Chemical Triangle, which already accounts for ten percent of our electricity sales at Bayernwerk. The networks are the key to secure supply.
Bayernwerk boss Westphal wants to focus on more digitalization in the region to stabilize the network
When the energy transition picked up speed ten years ago, many network operators warned of network breakdowns due to overload.
Why did this scenario not occur?
Westphal:
Because in Germany regulations have been developed through which network operators can intervene in the generation of certain power plants to stabilize the network.
We need stable network conditions in the German network and in the European network.
These compensation mechanisms work well.
But the concern persists, so solutions for security of supply are still being worked on.
One of them is the submarine cable Nordlink, with which the German power grid can access the Norwegian storage power plants.
At the regional level, we want to better monitor and control the network through more digitization and thus ensure supply.
Do you think that an increasing number of e-cars will overwhelm the network?
Westphal:
Viewed in isolation - no.
We are currently running a pilot project with Audi in which we are testing when and how quickly charging takes place and how this affects the networks.
But that's just the beginning.
In my vision, electric cars will be much more part of a decentralized power grid in ten years' time.
The keyword is bi-directional charging, which is what we are currently working on with BMW.
What does that mean?
Westphal:
That means that e-cars are not only charged on the grid, but that they also feed the grid when required.
Another project that is already running is Oskar II, named after Bayernwerk founder Oskar von Miller.
Here we connect discarded batteries from several Audi e-trons with a photovoltaic system and can use it to charge active e-cars.
That saves costs, new charging connections are expensive.
Firstly, we want to provide an incentive to extend the life cycle of batteries and, secondly, to feed our own fleet.
By 2025, all of our 1,300 vehicles should be electric.
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Egon Westphal, head of Bayernwerk AG.
© Marcus sleep
Bayerwerk boss Westphal: "With hydropower, the potential is relatively exhausted"
Doesn't it get too confusing when, in addition to hundreds of thousands of small power plants, huge fleets of cars are also connected to the grid?
Westphal:
Of course, the whole thing thrives on digitization and automation.
In terms of the development of the network control and the existing capacities, it will likely result in a traffic light system overall.
With green everyone can feed in as they want, with yellow we take a closer look and if we believe that the supply or security is endangered, then we will certainly be given the opportunity by the legislator to intervene accordingly.
What about hydropower?
Westphal:
Today, hydropower provides around fifteen percent of the green electricity from Bavaria.
But here the potential is relatively exhausted.
But if there are local initiatives that want to build a storage power plant, for example, we will be happy to calculate this from a grid point of view.
But we rely on photovoltaics.
It is growing the fastest at the moment, we have secured applications for a plant extension with an output of 7000 megawatts.
Compared to 2018, this is a five-fold increase in the requested service.
And that is what we need as a society in order to achieve our climate goals.
Are we on schedule?
Westphal:
The development in system planning is progressing so quickly that we can hardly keep up with the implementation in network construction.
In Upper Bavaria, for example, it is very difficult to find craftsmen to make the connections.
But there is also often public resistance, for example against substations.
Nobody wants them on their doorstep, but the energy transition will not succeed without it.
Dialogue and the struggle for acceptance are part of the energy transition.
Bayernwerk boss Westphal on wind energy: "Building new wind turbines is practically impossible"
Due to the 10H rule, wind power in Bavaria in particular has a difficult time.
Westphal:
The rule basically states that a wind turbine must be ten times its height from the nearest town.
That makes building new wind turbines virtually impossible at the moment.
We have to see how the situation develops politically.
As a network operator, we are of course open to technology and would integrate additional wind turbines at any time where it is worthwhile.
We hope the best.
Biomass systems are less efficient than photovoltaic systems, but their energy can be easily stored.
Do energy crops have a future?
Westphal:
From a strategic point of view, i.e. for security of supply: Yes, definitely, especially if the conventional power plants - apart from hydropower - are eliminated.
But here, too, it will have to be seen how the political situation will develop.
But we have also factored in these power plants.
What does all this mean for the future?
Westphal:
We are now in the second phase of the energy transition.
Now comes the question of how it will develop.
How does politics envision the power supply?
Or hydrogen production?
The main focus will be on Power-to-X technologies, i.e. the question of how electrical power can be stored in chemical form.
These include, for example, hydrogen, methane and synthetic fuels.
These are all important issues that are being negotiated, but I am optimistic that we can do this.
Interview: Matthias Schneider, Corinna Maier, Sebastian Hölzle