Energy Models

The energy transition is linking together the historically distinct sectors of electricity, mobility, heating, and industry. The sustainable energy infrastructure of the future will therefore unite a wide range of different energy systems: tandem solar-battery systems in single-family homes, combined heat and power plants in city districts, hydrogen pipelines for industrial users, but also new local and district supply lines for electricity, gas, and heat that connect consumers, producers, and storage systems within and between different cities and regions.

Energy models to represent every component

To be able to plan reliably for this future, we need energy management and energy technology models that can realistically portray the interactions between each component. Such models provide a foundation to make decisions about the political framework and economic investments that will shape our energy system for decades. But our current models are reaching their limits, especially when it comes to realistically integrating the couplings that exist between sectors. The technological and economic characteristics of many of the potential coupling options between electricity, gas, mobility, heating, and industry are still very uncertain. A holistic analysis of coupled energy infrastructure is therefore a pressing concern for research.

Fraunhofer IEG uses detailed, computer-assisted models that consider the properties of the smallest units within the system to represent the effects of specific innovations on the system as a whole. Building on these models allows us to evaluate the ramifications on markets and economics, leading to a better understanding of the solution space of the energy transition. This applies to both structural considerations towards an overarching systemic perspective and detailed planning for locations and transmission and distribution networks subject to the relevant technical and economic restrictions.

Technology roadmaps

Technology roadmaps, which can be used to identify new business models up to and including proposals for a new market design, as well as to develop detailed policy instruments, are also being created. System analysis is just as relevant to municipally operated companies as it is to regulators.

The models use extensive databases of relevant statistics, maps, technology profiles, and consumption and generation curves. To achieve comparable and transparent results across regions, countries, and continents over periods up to 2050, the models exploit coordinated framework conditions, as well as open source and open data concepts.

Fraunhofer ISI and IEG are constantly developing the content of their models together, adapting them flexibly to address any new questions that arise from science, society, or industry. Thanks to collaboration with software develops, the technical foundations of the model are always kept agile and up to date.