Transition to a sustainable energy system

Flexible power consumption with SynErgie: smart solutions for production facilities

Research News /

The volatile output of electricity from wind farms and photovoltaic plants can pose a real headache for energy companies. This is because of the need to maintain a stable supply of power at all times, even when such facilities are generating little or no electricity. Part of the solution to this problem is to adapt the power consumption of production plants to the fluctuating output from wind and solar generation. Researchers from the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have now piloted this innovative concept in the Augsburg region. The results have been encouraging so far: the team has been able to show that energy-adaptive production – adapting industry’s consumption of power to the actual generating capacity – not only works in practice but also reduces CO2 emissions.