Energy Newsletter

TenneT delays grid connections for data centers due to power network overload and warns of further blackouts like in Utrecht. Priority is on grid stability rather than new large consumer connections. This signals structural capacity limits of German infrastructure amid accelerated energy transition expansion.

German electricity production declines by 10% despite massive expansion of renewable capacity, while installed capacity grows by 143%. The core problem: intermittency and lack of storage capacity lead to overproduction (negative electricity prices) and bottlenecks. Points to a structural control problem.

Major energy companies (E.ON Q1: €3.3B EBITDA +2%, RWE/EnBW similarly) earn through regulated revenues despite 10-year grid expansion delays. Billion-euro profits are secured through state regulation while modernization stalls. Economic perverse incentives endanger energy transition timeline.

Germany pays €0.19-0.20/kWh industrial electricity vs. USA €0.07-0.08 – 2-3x higher. While spot prices turn negative (renewable oversupply), household prices haven't fallen (€0.10-11/kWh). The cost of the energy transition is borne primarily by industry and increasingly by private consumers.

EnBW and Vattenfall test new EQ-Piling technology for offshore wind power but require scarce specialized vessels and port capacities. TenneT's Südlink project is scheduled to come online as planned, but global competition for marine infrastructure is intensifying. Grid expansion pace remains the bottleneck.