We analyze optimal infrastructure investments for the integration of variable renewables in the German electricity system. Using a combined dispatch, transmission, and investment model, we compare four scenarios with different investment options, including gas-fired power plants, pumped hydro storage and transmission lines. In a reference scenario of the year 2024, geographically optimized investments ...
We analyze regulatory regimes for electricity transmission investment in the context of transformation of the power system towards renewable energy. We study three distinctive developments of the generation mix with different implications on network congestion, which may be either of temporary or permanent nature. We address the relative performance of a combined merchant-regulatory price-cap mechanism, ...
As variable renewable energy sources increasingly gain importance in global energy systems, there is a growing interest in understanding periods of variable renewable energy shortage (``Dunkelflauten''). Defining, quantifying, and comparing such shortage events across different renewable generation technologies and locations presents a surprisingly intricate challenge. Various approaches exist in different ...
Heat pumps are a key technology for reducing fossil fuel use in the heating sector. A transition to heat pumps implies an increase in electricity demand, especially in cold winter months. Using an open-source power sector model, we examine the power sector impacts of a massive expansion of decentralized heat pumps in Germany in 2030, combined with buffer heat storage of different sizes. Assuming that ...
Integrated assessment models (IAMs) are a central tool for the quantitative analysis of climate change mitigation strategies. However, due to their global, cross-sectoral and centennial scope, IAMs cannot explicitly represent the temporal and spatial details required to properly analyze the key role of variable renewable electricity (VRE) for decarbonizing the power sector and enabling emission reductions ...