All about Energy Grid

We need more flexibility in the electricity grid, in the electricity market, in the entire electricity system. One can hear these demands repeatedly in connection with the energy transition. This is because an increase in the share of wind and solar in the electricity mix, which generate electricity in a volatile manner and can only be controlled to a limited extent, poses new challenges for the electricity grid.

The Transmission Code 2007 is a set of rules in which the four transmission system operators define the conditions to access the German electricity grid. It was first drawn up in 1998 by the Association of German Grid Operators (now "Forum Netztechnik/Netzbetrieb" as part of the VDE) in response to the liberalization of the electricity market through the amendment of the Energy Industry Act (EnWG). The Transmission Code - sometimes also known as the Grid Code - defines the conditions for access to the German grid control network, since the 1998 revision of the EnWG (Energy Industry Act) implemented the separation of electricity generation, transport, and distribution ("unbundling"). The current German version was adopted in 2007; the European Transmission System Operators’ Association (ENTSO-E) is currently preparing a European version.

The term ‘dispatch’ refers to resource planning at a power plant by the plant’s operator. ’Redispatch’ refers to a short-term change in how a power plant is utilized. This request comes at the behest of a transmission system operator to prevent bottlenecks in the grid.

The grid code, also known as the transmission code in some countries, is the set of rules a transmission system operator (TSO) uses to define conditions for accessing the electricity grid. Depending on the country, the distribution system operator (DSO) fixes rules for the electricity grid at the low-voltage or distribution level separately in the distribution code.