Energy storage potential in the Northern German region Osnabrück-Steinfurt

The study shows the technical potential of electrical storage solutions for a so called energy region in the northern part of Germany. Based on the model region's targets for the increase of renewable energy capacity and by using annual simulations in hourly time steps, required storage capacity was calculated. Focus is on the electric energy supply. Results were determined under the requirement of various self-sufficiency degrees. Unlike the common calculation in the region's energy concepts, the self-sufficiency degree was determined solely by considering the directly consumed energy from fluctuating renewable energies or from storage. Thus, a bridge is built to the partly abstract ambitions of energy autarky. Further, various operation sites and appropriate storage technologies were analyzed.