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The single bidding zone leads to grid congestion and costs – local market prices balance supply and demand regionally

Local Market Prices Can Reduce Electricity Costs

With the liberalization of the electricity markets in 1998, Germany opted for a single, nationwide wholesale price. Regional differences in supply and demand are not taken into account. In the event of grid congestion, electricity generators are paid to adjust their output. This leads to rising costs, an overestimation of grid expansion requirements and increased bureaucracy. Reforms are therefore ...

Multi-Threshold Time Series Analysis Enables Characterization of Variable Renewable Energy Droughts in Europe

Variable renewable energy droughts, so called Dunkelflaute events, emerge as a challenge for climateneutral energy systems based on variable renewables. Here we characterize European drought events for on- and offshore wind power, solar photovoltaics, and renewable technology portfolios, using 38 historic weather years and an advanced identification method. Their characteristics heavily depend on the ...

Divorce as Liberation from Violence: The Role of Legal Protection and Women’s Shelters

Does increased legal infrastructure empower victims to leave abusive relationships? Structural barriers often prevent victims of intimate partner violence from seeking help, with two-thirds of female victims in Europe neither reporting incidents nor accessing support. I study Germany’s 2002 Act on Protection against Violence, which introduced residence bans in shared households and temporarily awarded ...

Franziska Holz and Wolf-Peter Schill appointed as members of the "Energy System of the Future"

Prof. Dr. Franziska Holz, Deputy Head of the Department of Energy, Transport, Environment, and Dr. Wolf-Peter Schill, Head of the Research Department "Transformation of the Energy Industry" in the Department of Energy, Transport, Environment were appointed members of "Energy System of the Future" (ESYS) in December 2025 for the next three years. ESYS is an initiative of the German Academy of Science ...

Klimafreundliche Gebäudefinanzierung: Risikomanagement und Transitionsplanung bei deutschen Banken

Die Integration von Klimarisiken in das Risikomanagement von Banken sowie die Transitionsplanung schreiten voran. In der Gebäudefinanzierung besteht jedoch noch Nachholbedarf.▪Das Management von Transitionsrisiken ist vor allem aufsichtsrechtlich motiviert.▪Eine Verbesserung der Datengrundlage und Entwicklung eines einheitlichen Transitionsszenarios können die Genauigkeit und Vergleichbarkeit von Klima-Szenarioanalysen ...

The role of non-cognitive skills for wage growth across occupations and firms

The aim of this research agenda is to analyze the effect of non-cognitive skills on individual wage growth and earnings trajectories across occupations and firms, and to quantify how returns to these skills vary with occupation- and firm-specific skill requirements. We also examine how non-cognitive skills affect occupational choices over the working life and analyze the potential of education...

Aligning Competition Policy and Industrial Policy in the EU

Trade conflicts, geopolitical tensions, digital disruption, and the climate crisis pose major challenges for the European Union (EU) and its Member States. As called for in the Draghi Report, industrial policy measures can increase competitiveness, strengthen resilience, and facilitate the twin transformation. This article explores ways in which competition policy can be realigned to better accommodate ...

Innovation Dynamics and Technological Maturity in the Fusion Sector: An Assessment of Fusion Projects

Nuclear fusion is envisioned for near-term energy generation deployment, with projected timelines for commercial deployment of fusion expected for the 2030s. Previous research has been limited to either economic or technological maturity assessments of the sector. To address this gap, we design a novel framework that evaluates fusion projects across the most common reactor types and derives the trajectories ...

German Economy on the Upswing - Global Economy Continues to Grow Moderately

After three years of subdued economic activity, the German economy is on the road to recovery. While the Iran war and erratic U.S. trade policy are weighing on growth, their impact is only moderate. Although the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that U.S. tariffs are unlawful, this does not change the tariff rates imposed on German exports, as the agreement with the European Union is assumed to remain in ...