We were able to achieve the systemic CO2 savings of around 197,394 tonnes of CO2 in 2021 and 363,267 tonnes in 2022 with the help of our customers, because we market their flexibilities on the power market in such a way that the use of green power increases overall compared to a scenario without the use of flexibilities.
Flexibility as virtual storage
For example, when there is a lot of wind or PV power available, we ensure with our short-term trading that more power is consumed than in times when fossil power generation has to be used. From the point of view of the overall system, flexibility has the same effect as, for example, a battery storage system that stores electricity when the share of renewables is high and discharges it when there is a shortage of generation. Flexibility therefore also stabilises the system.
Market prices as an energy transition motivator
When wind and PV plants are running at full capacity, the price level on the electricity market drops. Because the electricity market uses price signals to encourage the use of green electricity and makes production processes attractive during low-price phases, it has a highly effective steering effect on usage behaviour. This must be promoted within the framework of the energy transition. Since consumption and generation always have to be matched to the second and the forecast error in weather-dependent electricity generation continues to increase with the increasing expansion of renewables, it is important to encourage flexible industrial processes, for example, to increase the load precisely in these time windows and to reduce it in return when there is a shortage of renewables and fossil generation has to step in. This motivation is provided by the price signals of short-term trading.
What does that have to do with CO2?
The steering effect of short-term trading described above kills two birds with one stone. On the one hand, it supports the electricity grid by helping to better coordinate generation and consumption and reduce costly redispatch measures. On the other hand, the use of flexibility in short-term trading enables the increased use of green electricity, which displaces fossil base load and thus saves CO2. Germany therefore needs a flexibility offensive in order to manage the energy transition, apart from austerity measures - flexibility is important and is also fun from an economic point of view!
