Flexibility as a necessity
August, 2023
Background
The German-Israeli Energy Partnership was launched in 2022. This partnership constitutes a joint effort to support innovative projects, the exchange of best practices to mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure a smooth transition towards a carbon-free economy whilst bolstering economic growth in Germany and Israel. This is done by bringing together policymakers, leading entrepreneurs, and experts in relevant fields to tackle some of the most pressing challenges in topics ranging from cyber security and the protection of critical energy infrastructure to ramping up the production, the storage, and the transportation of energy from renewable and sustainable sources.
To reach its climate goals, Israel has set an ambitious objective to elevate its renewable energy production from around 10% today to 30% by 2030.
Challenge and Goal
Alongside the expansion of renewable energy production through photovoltaics or wind turbines, it is critical to adapt the electricity grid to seamlessly handle the increased volatility inherent to renewable energy sources.
Action (!) taken
In June 2023, the German-Israeli Energy Partnership hosted an expert trip to Berlin and Leipzig which brought together high-level representatives from Israel’s energy sector as well as the management of the Israeli energy regulator with German senior experts to jointly address these complex issues by looking at grid and market-based options. The visit included multiple technical workshops on grid operations, a tour of the 50Hertz control centre, and practical discussions at the aggregator e2m, the European Energy Exchange (EEX) in Leipzig.
Impact
The knowledge exchanged during this experience empowered Israeli policymakers to formulate ground breaking guidelines on net flexibility. This strategic move enables the integration of an additional 2.5 GW of renewable energy into the Israeli electricity grid and marks a significant achievement for Israel as well as the German-Israeli Energy Partnership.