Renewable power supply – something you can rely on!

Does a higher share of renewables make the grid less reliable? In Germany, the share of renewable energy in net electricity generation has risen from 8.5% in 2003 to over 60% today. Yet Germany remains among the global leaders in electricity supply reliability.

This is proven by the SAIDI index. It measures how long on average consumers are affected by unplanned interruption of supply each year. In 2024, the average was 11.7 minutes. In Europe, Switzerland is the only country whose electricity supply is slightly more reliable. What’s especially striking is that Germany’s SAIDI index has dropped significantly since 2006. Back then, consumers had to endure an average of 21.5 minutes without electricity. So far, there is no sign of any negative correlation between electricity supply stability and the increase in renewable energies.

What can we do to keep it that way?

The rapid growth of renewables, storage, EVs, and heat pumps is significantly impacting transmission and distribution systems. We need smart, flexible and responsive grids and markets, which even integrate consumers, to meet the requirements of a decentralized, climate-neutral energy supply. For this reason, EM-Power Europe focuses on the latest trends and developments in modernizing and digitalizing the power grid and turning it into a flexible smart grid, integrating prosumers, electromobility and power-to-heat concepts into a holistic, renewable energy system.