On the way to digitizing the energy industry

As part of the energy turnaround and the associated objective of the German government, the electricity supply is to be covered 100 percent by renewable energy sources by 2045. In addition to the expansion of the generation plants and supply networks required for this, there are numerous other challenges facing the entire value chain of the energy industry.

How can digitization make increasing complexity manageable?

The integration of fluctuating renewable energy sources, sector coupling and the elimination of base-load capable power plants are leading to a considerably more complex system. The question arises to what extent digitization and the use of digital technologies can contribute to making the increasing complexity manageable.

In the course of the elaboration, the benefits of digitization and the use of digital technologies are illuminated. It also examines which external factors can be identified that slow down or accelerate the digitization process. For this purpose, various areas are analyzed in terms of their influence on selected use cases of digital technologies as part of an environment analysis.

Influence of regulatory framework

It has been found that the digitization of the energy industry is primarily determined by the regulatory framework and the competitive dynamics within the industry. On the regulatory side, the course is gradually being set for an intelligent, transparent and controllable energy system. On the other hand, development is being held back by the stringent requirements imposed by legislation on IT security and data protection . This is also considered necessary by the authors in view of the relevance of critical infrastructure. In terms of competition, the high barriers to entry and exit in particular, consisting of regulatory restrictions and lock-in effects, represent a major obstacle to sufficient innovation pressure in many parts of the value chain. Start-ups currently mainly serve niche markets or provide services along the value chain. However, startups are making a significant contribution to the progress of digitization in the energy industry by developing a wide variety of services and concepts.