Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology

The Fraunhofer IEE in Kassel researches for the national and international transformation of energy systems.

It is warm underground. Accessing this energy source on a large scale to heat houses and apartments is the task of the new UrbanGroundHeat research project. Geothermal energy is  CO2-free and can be easily tapped in many places in Germany, but has not yet been widely developed for legal and economic reasons. As a result of the energy crisis, conditions have changed. A cooperation of research and industry under the leadership of the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE now intends to facilitate the use of geothermal energy for municipal utilities, cities and communities.

The map shows the global potential for power-to-X technologies in coastal and inland sites in countries outside the European Economic Area. Now the interactive tool has been published in an English and Spanish version for international use.

The HyAfrica project is exploring deposits of natural hydrogen in several African countries to provide alternative energy for local areas. The long-term joint research and innovation partnership between the European Union and the African Union in the field of renewable energy (LEAP-RE) is funding the project with a budget of nearly one million euros. HyAfrica is the first international research project to explore the potential of natural hydrogen as a new energy source.

Green ammonia is becoming increasingly important in the debate about PtX imports and climate protection. There are good reasons for this, as the effort required to produce and transport the chemical compound is relatively low. Fraunhofer IEE in Kassel has therefore now expanded its global PtX atlas: it now also provides data on the production potential of green ammonia in 97 countries and areas worldwide, and also shows the respective production and transport costs. The PtX Atlas, which is freely accessible online, shows where in the world which quantities of green hydrogen and other PtX energy carriers can be produced and exported to Europe at what cost.

he integration of photovoltaics into power grids requires increasingly better forecasts, especially with increasing capacities, because uninterrupted grid operation does not accept avoidable errors. In this context, rare meteorological events still present particular challenges. In addition to volcanic ash and Saharan dust, a solar eclipse requires the attention of grid operators, electricity traders and forecasting service providers. At the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE, a solution has now been developed to combine the degree of occultation with established weather forecast models specific to the location and time.

Hydropower is an essential part of the Norwegian energy system. The HydroConnect project is investigating whether and how Norwegian hydropower can contribute to climate protection in Europe. HydroConnect is a collaborative project of the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE, the Norwegian research organization SINTEF Energy Research, the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and the University of Trento. HydroConnect is co-funded by the Norwegian Research Council.

From June 21 to 23, 2022, at the leading exhibition for the European energy industry E-World energy & water 2022 in Essen, Germany, the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE presents services and solutions for the energy industry derived from application-oriented research. At the group stand of the Fraunhofer Energy Alliance (Hall 5, Booth 326), Fraunhofer IEE will show know-how from the business units "Analysis and Consulting for Energy Economics”, "Energy Meteorology Information Systems", "Digital Portfolio Management" and "Grid Planning and Operation".

Dominik Jost, Jonas Koch and Dominik Beinert, scientists at the Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE, have won the Data4Grid Challenge "AI-supported consumption forecasts based on smart meter data". The competition was organized by the German Energy Agency (dena) and umlaut. The results and award ceremony presentation took place at the Future Energy Lab in Berlin on May 4, 2022.