In the future, network operators will be allowed to limit the electricity purchased from new controllable heat pumps or charging stations if there is a risk of overloading the electricity network. This is announced by the Federal Network Agency.
If there is a risk of overloading the power grid, power grid operators will in future be allowed to temporarily limit the electricity purchased from new controllable heat pumps or charging stations, the Federal Network Agency announced today. The authority emphasized that regular household electricity would not be affected.
“A minimum output must always be available so that heat pumps can be operated and electric cars can continue to be charged,” it continued. The distribution network operators are allowed to reduce the consumption to up to 4.2 kilowatts for the duration of the overload. “This means that heat pumps can continue to operate and electric cars can usually be recharged for 50 kilometers in two hours.”
In return a discount
The Federal Network Agency assumes that interventions by network operators will only have to take place in exceptional cases and will not result in any significant loss of comfort. “Complete shutdowns of controllable consumption devices are no longer permitted,” the authority said.
Network operators must report control interventions in detail in a uniform format on a common internet platform. This makes it understandable for the general public when overload problems occur in individual network areas and the network operator needs to equip its network better.
In return, the operators of the controllable devices, such as households, receive a discount; either as an annual flat rate for the network fee or as a reduction of the network fee labor price by 60 percent for the respective devices. Anyone who opts for the flat rate can also opt for a time-variable network fee from 2025. Consumers then pay less network fees when purchasing electricity during times of low network utilization. The network operators are also no longer allowed to refuse to connect controllable consumption devices with reference to possible bottlenecks.
New rules apply from January
The new rules apply from January. For existing systems for which there is already an agreement for control by the network operator, there are long-standing transitional regulations. Existing systems without such an agreement remain permanently excluded, but can participate voluntarily. Night storage heaters should not be permanently subject to the new rules.
Background: Controllable consumption devices such as heat pumps and private charging devices for electric cars have higher performance than most household appliances, according to the Federal Network Agency. Controllable consumption devices also more often receive electricity at the same time. The low-voltage network is able to accommodate individual new applications; However, most of the low-voltage networks are not yet designed for rapid ramp-up. The conclusion is that the networks must therefore be optimized, digitized and expanded at a high pace.