Storage requirements in energy regions taking into account different degrees of self-sufficiency (Möller et al. 2015)

So-called energy regions want to become independent of the import of fossil resources in the energy sector and strive for self-sufficiency through the use of renewable energies. The degree of self-sufficient supply is usually determined by the ratio of energy production and consumption on the basis of annual balance sheet calculations. The present study uses time-step-based annual simulations to determine the storage requirements for a model region in Germany in the field of electricity supply. The basis for this is the targets set for this region for the expansion of renewable energies and the reduction of electricity consumption for the year 2030.

The results are determined using different degrees of self-sufficiency. In contrast to the usual energy concepts of the regions, only the energy consumed directly or drawn from the storage system is taken into account when determining the degree of self-sufficiency.

The results show that with the regional targets for 2030 up to a range of around 80% self-sufficiency, no storage facilities are needed, as the load can already be covered directly by renewable energies in most hours of the year due to the high generation capacities. For 100% self-sufficiency, however, the storage requirements are immense. Networking regions initially leads to a reduced storage requirement compared to individual considerations. However, the inclusion of regions that would not be able to supply themselves due to too little renewable electricity generation compared to consumption increases the need for storage again.

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