On May 15, 2024, the Franco-German Office for the Energy Transition (DFBEW) is organizing a conference on the topic:
Grid integration of wind energy and photovoltaics:
grid planning, challenges and synergies
At the end of 2023, the total installed capacity for photovoltaics was approximately 81 GW in Germany and 19 GW in France, and that for onshore wind power was 61 GW in Germany and. 22 GW in France. (according to the statistical department of MEFSin StatInfo for onshore wind energy and photovoltaics , the German Windguard and the Fraunhofer Institute ISE ). In the same year, renewable energy sources exceeded 50% of the German electricity mix for the first time.
Against the background of the dynamic development of renewable energies and the ambitious goals, the question arises of integrating these fundamentally decentralized and unsteady energy sources into networks, which sometimes have difficulty maintaining speed. Newly built systems sometimes have to expect significant delays in connection or bottlenecks, which regularly lead to shutdowns.
Further challenges arise with regard to, among other things, transmission networks, planning instruments necessary for a smooth and optimally combined project development of onshore wind and photovoltaic systems (such as approval procedures), flexibility and storage capacities, etc.
Although these different issues have been recognized and solutions have been proposed through numerous programmatic documents, the challenges remain significant. For example, the EU Action Plan for Grids drawn up by the European Commission estimates the investment needed to maintain the grids in this decade alone at 584 billion euros, with the distribution network being given a clear priority.
In addition to taking stock of the grid integration of onshore wind energy and photovoltaics, the challenges of planning and grid connection as well as the opportunities and possible synergies between the two sectors are discussed in a German-French approach. The focus is particularly on the following questions:
- What is the current status of the legal framework and networks? Which needs are already being taken into account or should they be in the future?
- What dynamics do the different roadmaps drawn up by national or European authorities express? How do players from the respective industries assess the latest developments?
- How can the requirements arising from the network structure be reconciled with the growing share of renewable energy sources in the electricity mix?
- How can synergies between wind energy and photovoltaic systems be promoted in terms of integration into the distribution network?
The conference is aimed at all actors in the energy transition, especially from the areas of politics, industry, administration, business, science and media. It will take place in Paris and will be simultaneously translated into German and French.
In the evening there will be a networking event for conference participants and DFBEW members in Paris.
