Asset- vs. Service-based Business Models – Where Lies The Future For Utilities?

August 24, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

In Germany, E.on and RWE (innogy) separated their core business units into two different companies and it became inherent that utilities have to change their business strategy to survive in a future distributed energy system. Now, what do the two strategies of Innogy and E.on tell us about the future of the utility business in general? In the following we will present to you different business models that have been introduced by PWC (2014). We will try to show how the current strategies of E.on and Innogy fit into this framework.

The Future Business Model for Energy Utilities in the US: Quo vadis?

August 14, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Decentralization, decarbonization and digitalization drive incumbent utilities to change their strategies and business models. But how could the future business model of a utility in the US look like? In this post we pick up this question and dive deeper into the current discussion in the US.

Digital platforms in the energy sector – definition & first applications

August 04, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Digital platforms are on the rise in many sectors. Currently, the question is raised which role digital platforms could play in the energy sector, especially in distributed systems based on renewable energies. However, there seems to be no clear understanding of what a platform or a platform market acually is. Therefore, we provide a definition of platforms and platform markets and discuss some potential applications of these in the energy sector.

Regional Flexibility Markets in Germany - Quota vs. Market Models

July 24, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Regional flexibility markets are widely discuss to tackle three issues: First, distributed generators and consumption should be able to provide flexibility to network operators. Second, other market parties should get access to flexibility as well to develop new market products and thereby increase the value of distributed generation and reduce the costs of the energy transition. Third, DSOs and TSOs should coordinate their balancing activities. In this post we introduce the current discussion in Germany how to organize regional flexibility provision.

Regional Flexibility Markets – A European view on the TSO-DSO interface

July 14, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Decentralization is one important aspect of the energy transition. Decentralization drives the need for more coordination between TSO and DSO to secure grid stability. Regional flexibility markets might be one solution to establish efficient coordination between the network operators, the network users and market parties. We discuss in this post 5 concepts that are discussed right now in Europe.

TSO & DSO coordination – key for the integration of renewables

July 03, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

The increasing shares of renewables increase the pressure on the existing electricity system in Germany. The network operators are increasingly applying congestion management measures (redispatch, feed-in management) to balance the grid in times of high production from renewables. While this is currently a primary task of the transmission system operator, the distributed character of the energy transition requires a more decentralized approach. Now, the question how to organize the TSO-DSO coordination efficiently becomes a very important issue.

The Coordination Problem: A key challenge for Smart Grids

June 22, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Coordination between distributed generation and the network operators is becoming a key issue for the energy transition. With smart grids, the complexity of the coordination issue is increasing. What is the coordination problem, how does it relate to liberalization and why is it becoming a pressing issue for smart grids?

How Third Parties pushed E.ON & RWE in Germany to change strategies

June 12, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

E.on and RWE, two of the largest European utilities, significantly changed their strategies in 2016: Both separated their renewable generation business from conventional generation in two independent entities. In this post we discuss the key driver that forced E.on and RWE to change strategies: Competition from third parties that operate renewable generation.

Why we need competition between data management models for smart grids

May 20, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and others are currently developing centralized data management systems for smart grids. These data hubs shall secure the efficient exchange of data from smart metering. While there are good reasons to proceed with this approach, we argue in this post that competition between different decentralized models for data management might increase the level of innovation compared to centralized approaches.

Cleantech startups: German utilities bridging the valley of death?

April 10, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Cleantech startups suffered from several challenges in the past. Most prominently, many startups failed to acquire enough venture capital for a market rollout. This is currently changing in Germany. We discuss in this post what exatly is changing in Germany and how three factors together increase the chances of cleantech startups to succeed in the German energy market.

Digitalization in the Energy Sector – Challenge accepted?

March 20, 2017 by Marius Buchmann in Research

Utilities are at a crossroad: They can follow their established paths and focus on their traditional long-term business models. Or they face the challenges of digitalization and adapt to the faster innovation cycles related to digital business models. We discuss the utilities' strategies related to digitization and find arguments that support both scenarios. Which way are the utilities going to take? Let's see.