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Market & Industry 11/09/2024, 17:35
The revitalisation of GHG quota prices is still a long time coming.
(Image: petrmalinak/Shutterstock)

"Punitive tariffs do not revitalise the GHG quota mechanism"

Gütersloh - Trading in greenhouse gas quotas has still not got off the ground following the fraud scandal involving forged certificates and misdeclared biodiesel. Prices fell again in August. Punitive tariffs on brown grease have not yet stimulated the market.
Politics 11/09/2024, 17:22
Kadri Simson, EU Commissioner for Energy, gives a press conference on the State of the Energy Union 2024 report.
(Image: European Union, 2024)

Still heavily dependent on Russian natural gas

Brussels - The EU Commission has published its annual report on the state of the Energy Union. According to the report, the EU still gets 18 per cent of its gas imports from Russia. But the trend is pointing downwards, the outgoing EU Commissioner Kadri Simson reassured.
Politics 11/09/2024, 17:09
Grid connection is one of the key issues to be amended in the EnWG.
(Image: Envato/shotsstudio)

EnWG amendment: Grid connection plans drive associations

Berlin - Several associations have submitted comments on the amendment to the German Energy Industry Act: They see considerable potential for improvement, particularly in the new regulations on the grid connection process and energy sharing.
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Politics

Politics 11/09/2024, 16:41
The German government is now taking a further step in its long overdue power plant strategy.
(Image: Trianel)

Consultation opened for power plant safety law

Berlin - The German government has launched a public consultation on the key points of the Power Plant Safety Act. The Ministry of Economics has published two consultation papers. Steag/Iqony, the Essen-based power plant operator, was not the only one eagerly awaiting them.
Politics 10/09/2024, 16:39

DUH calls for ban on compensation promises

Berlin - DUH (Deutsche Umwelthilfe) has successfully concluded its lawsuits against misleading advertising claims with alleged "climate neutrality". It has successfully conducted a total of 92 proceedings since May 2022. The German government now has a duty.
Politics 10/09/2024, 13:14

Draghi: EU should finance grids together

Brussels - In a report for the EU Commission, former ECB chief Mario Draghi complains that the EU is falling behind in competition with the USA and China. However, he sees an opportunity for growth in decarbonisation. The EU should therefore invest jointly in energy grids.
Politics 10/09/2024, 12:19

Precise redistribution of CO2 revenue scores points

Berlin - The acceptance of CO2 pricing is higher if the revenue is redistributed. This is the result of a meta-study by the MCC research institute. According to the study, citizens are most likely to accept such pricing if the revenue is channelled into climate-friendly investments. The "climate money" is viewed rather sceptically.
Politics 09/09/2024, 17:03

North Rhine-Westphalia wants to double renewables by 2030

Düsseldorf - The federal-state government of North Rhine-Westphalia has presented a concept paper for the energy and heat transition in Germany's most populous state. The energy and heat strategy lists almost 100 state policy measures.
All news in the rubric Politics

Market & Industry

Market & Industry 11/09/2024, 15:40
Enersis software is used by numerous distribution grid operators.
(Image: EnBW AG/Enersis Suisse AG)

Complete takeover: EnBW buys IT service provider Enersis

Karlsruhe/Bern - The Swiss IT service provider Enersis is now part of EnBW. The complete takeover is intended to advance the Karlsruhe-based company in the digitalisation of its distribution grids. Enersis CEO Thomas Koller, who will continue in his position unchanged, hopes to be able to push product development and company growth in the new constellation.
Market & Industry 10/09/2024, 16:51

BDI beats the drum for rescue programme worth billions

Berlin - The industry association BDI is insisting on nothing less than a new industrial policy agenda to save Germany as a business location. According to a study commissioned by the association, this will require investments totalling 1.4 trillion euros by 2030. euros by 2030. The industrial transformation is particularly promising in light of the energy and heating transition.
Market & Industry 10/09/2024, 13:07

"The factory premises change every day"

Salzgitter - Steel giant Salzgitter has been pursuing its 'SALCOS' decarbonisation strategy for a good eight years. In an interview with energate, project spokesperson Stefan Mecke explained the background and objectives, summarised the interim results and talked about the importance of the hydrogen core grid and PPAs for the strategy.
Market & Industry 10/09/2024, 12:48

Eon plans hydrogen production in Essen from 2027

Essen - The energy group Eon is planning to build its own hydrogen production facility in the Ruhr region. Group subsidiary Eon Hydrogen wants to build an electrolyser with a generation capacity of around 20 MW at Essen's city harbour. Hydrogen production is scheduled to start in 2027.
Market & Industry 10/09/2024, 10:26

Struggle to save Varta gets tougher

Ellwangen - The resistance from the circle of Varta shareholders against the rescue plan is apparently unbroken. The alliance of opponents has started talks with the company and announced legal action.
All news in the rubric Market & Industry

Power

Power 11/09/2024, 14:01
According to the study, offshore wind farms should be connected to hydrogen and electricity.
(Image: Equinor ASA/Jan Arne Wold)

Offshore wind farms: Aquaventus promotes combined connection

Berlin - Offshore wind farms located far from the coast can be connected most efficiently using a combination of hydrogen pipelines and power cables. This is the result of a study commissioned by Aquaventus. However, the Wind Sea Act would have to be amended for such a combination of connections.
Power 11/09/2024, 13:46

Study: Non-transparent prices from charging service providers

Hamburg - Wallbox service providers, known as charge point operators (CPOs), offer many different products and tariffs for apartment blocks, homeowners' associations and public charging points. These differ considerably in terms of scope and costs for users. The consulting firm The Charging Project has analysed 113 of them.
Power 11/09/2024, 13:45

Wemag expects falling grid fees

Schwerin - The energy supplier Wemag is expecting lower grid fees in the coming year. The reason for this is the reform of the Federal Network Agency, which is intended to ensure a fairer distribution of costs for the energy transition. Regions with a high proportion of renewable energies in particular will benefit from this.
Power 11/09/2024, 11:50

"The conversion of coal-fired power plants would be highly attractive"

Berlin - Essen-based power plant operator Steag/Iqony is hoping for clarity on its power plant strategy in the near future. One of the things the company would like to see in the political debate is the conversion of existing coal-fired power stations. According to Andreas Reichel, CEO of Steag/Iqony, this would have a considerable cost advantage.
Power 10/09/2024, 14:40

Green Planet Energy wants to combine market and promotion

Hamburg - Green Planet Energy sees a threat to the PPA market because the Federal Ministry of Economics wants to reorganise the subsidies for renewable energies. The green energy provider is therefore proposing a model with the option of switching between state subsidies and market-based electricity supply contracts.
All news in the rubric Power

Gas & Heat

Gas & Heat 11/09/2024, 16:30
Availability, downtimes and costs are the three success factors for an H2 refuelling station, says Frank Fronzke, managing director of H2 Mobility.
(Image: H2 Mobility/Max Jackwerth)

"A technological leap forward for hydrogen refuelling stations"

Düsseldorf - The project partners H2 Mobility, Hoerbiger and Ariel are building one of the most powerful hydrogen refuelling stations in Europe in Düsseldorf. energate asked Frank Fronzke, managing director and COO of H2 Mobility, about the new technology and the expansion plans for the German H2 refuelling station network.
Gas & Heat 11/09/2024, 15:47

Lingen: RWE awards third electrolyser contract to Sunfire

Dresden/Lingen - The energy group RWE is finalising its plans for hydrogen production at the Lingen site. The third part of the 300 MW plant will be supplied by the Dresden-based company Sunfire. This will involve alkaline electrolysis modules. RWE has been testing the technology at the site since mid-August.
Gas & Heat 11/09/2024, 13:18

Hydrogen still very popular with local authorities

Berlin - The H2vorOrt initiative has presented the new Gas Grid Transformation Plan (GTP). It once again emphasises the importance of distribution grids for a comprehensive hydrogen infrastructure in Germany. It is supported by the needs of industry, but local authorities also want to continue using hydrogen.
Gas & Heat 11/09/2024, 13:01

North Rhine-Westphalia supports Aachen geothermal project

Düsseldorf - The public utility company Aachener Stadtwerke (Stawag) can count on funding from the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia for the exploration of geothermal potential. The state-owned NRW Bank has now approved around 800,000 euros in state funding for the exploration of the subsurface to the north-east of Aachen.
Gas & Heat 10/09/2024, 16:36

Study: Biogas could drastically reduce electricity costs

Berlin - A new study commissioned by the German Biogas Association has calculated the potential that biogas reserve power plants offer for the electricity market. In addition to lower production costs compared to hydrogen, biogas also has a dampening effect on wholesale prices.
All news in the rubric Gas & Heat