Network agency sees planning errors
Oranienburg is looking for a quick solution to the electricity shortage
April 16, 2024, 6:49 p.m
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Due to capacity problems, Oranienburg does not allow new connections to the power grid. The city justifies the step with the rapid growth of the city. The Federal Network Agency sees the local authorities as responsible for the misery.
In view of the bottleneck in the electricity network of the Brandenburg city of Oranienburg, the Federal Network Agency intervened to clarify the supply problems. A municipal working group is examining how the problem can be remedied.
In the growing community with around 48,000 residents, the demand for electricity increased, among other things, due to company settlements, influxes and increased installation of heat pumps. There are capacity bottlenecks in the municipal utility’s high-voltage network, so no new connections are approved. Additional heat pumps and e-charging stations are no longer possible, and new commercial and industrial areas cannot currently be supplied with electricity.
“The electricity needs of our growing city have developed enormously, faster than was predicted in the past,” Mayor Alexander Laesicke said in a statement last week.
When asked, the Federal Network Agency said this situation was unacceptable. From their point of view, there are no comparable cases in Germany. “According to the Federal Network Agency’s preliminary assessment, these are misjudgments in the planning.” The Federal Network Agency wants further information from the municipal utilities to clarify the matter.
The city announced that it had set up a working group and was now examining interim solutions. Because: A new substation is being planned and is scheduled to start operations in 2026. According to the city, in order to bridge the bottleneck until a new substation is completed, it is possible to use a temporary replacement substation or use gas turbines to supply electricity in the municipal utility network.