Kopernikus-Talks at the Hannover fair: Prof. De Doncker introduces ENSURE

Kopernikus-projekts at Hanover Fair 2018. Maike Schmidt represented ENavi. On April 26, 2018, the Kopernicus-Copernicus projects jointly presented their first results at the Hanover Fair in the "Integrated Energy Plaza" forum. Afterwards, they discussed current research topics with the audience e.g. : How can the power grid be adapted to an irregular supply? How can we store renewable electricity? Which technologies are important for adapting industrial processes to a new energy supply? After the presentations and the discussion, the moderator Robert Brandt, Bundesverband Erneuerbare Energie e.V., was convinced that the four Kopernikus projects work closely together to develop long-term overall system solutions. The topic of public acceptance played a key role role in all presentations as well as the discussion. All speakers agreed and attached great importance to the need to include society into the energy transistion.

Prof. Dr. ir. Dr. h.c. Rik De Doncker presented the project ENSURE (New Network Structures). He addressed the question of how the power grid can be adapted to an irregular supply. The future infrastructure consists of a finely branched network of small and very small feed-in stations. From wind farms at sea, the energy must then be transported as efficiently as possible over hundreds of kilometres to cities and industrial areas via large electricity motorways. He also mentions the flexibilty and volatility of renewable energies giving the example that every owner of a photovoltaic system will sometimes be an electricity producer and sometimes a consumer. New, complex requirements must be met in a holistic, intelligently networked system.

Further information on the Copernicus lectures can be found here.