Network fees: a growing burden for companies
The share of network fees in total energy costs for companies has increased significantly in recent years. Network fees currently account for around 40-50 percent of electricity costs for companies, and the trend is rising. This development can also be attributed to the expansion of renewable energies and the associated network modernization. The grid infrastructure must be increasingly adapted to cope with and compensate for the fluctuating feed-in from wind and solar energy. The regional arrangement (lots of renewable generation in the north vs. large industries in the south) leads to increased demand for transmission capacity. The conversion of all sectors (transport, heat, etc.) to electricity also requires an increased expansion of the networks and at the same time excessive bureaucracy. These investments lead to higher network fees, which are also passed on to companies.
In recent years, network fees have risen continuously: in the last 15 years alone, they have risen by around 40-50 percent. Companies in eastern Germany are even more burdened by higher network fees than companies in western Germany. These differences result from regionally different requirements for the network infrastructure and the respective investment costs.
No relief for companies in this area is to be expected in the future either: experts assume that network fees in commerce and industry will increase by 15 or 7 euro cents per kilowatt hour by 2045, which corresponds to a tripling (source: https://www.ewi.uni-koeln.de/cms/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/2024_04_Abschlussbericht_Netzentgelte_BW_DE.pdf). This significantly increases the burden on companies that rely on external power supplies. Energy-intensive companies in particular could lose competitiveness as a result. Companies must therefore quickly find solutions to protect themselves against rising energy costs.
Photovoltaic contracting as a solution for cost reduction and future security
The use of photovoltaic systems offers a promising solution for reducing the costs mentioned. By using On-Site Power Purchase Agreements (PPA), companies can use the solar power generated directly on site without having to transport it via the public grid. This means that network fees for this part of the energy supply are completely eliminated.
Photovoltaic contracting enables companies to use photovoltaic systems without high initial investments. A good contracting provider takes care of the planning (including optimized alignment on the roof or facade), construction and operation of the system, while the company pays a monthly base price and/or a fixed labor price for the electricity. This is usually significantly cheaper than the current electricity price including all additional costs on the market, which leads to immediate savings on electricity costs. At the same time, solar contracting protects against future cost increases because the price for solar power remains constant over the contract term.
Despite this opportunity to save on network fees, levies, duties, taxes and energy costs, companies are still faced with the challenge of reducing network fees for peak performance. Additional measures are helpful here, especially the use of energy storage. However, determining the economically optimal storage size for a company is complex. Another problem is that storage providers tend to sell storage that is as large as possible; However, this is not always the economically optimal solution for the company. Some contracting providers have recognized this problem and therefore also offer economically more economical storage solutions, including SRS Deutschland GmbH.
SRS Germany: Contracting and benefit-optimizing storage solutions from a single source
SRS Deutschland is a PV contracting provider that aims to help companies efficiently reduce and optimize their energy costs with tailor-made photovoltaic and storage solutions or a combination of both – and thus remain competitive in the long term. As a provider of PV solutions, it shares the interests of its customers to a large extent. SRS offers full service: SRS takes care of all the necessary steps for planning and implementing the PV project for its customers from minute one. The provider clarifies everything necessary with the network operators, obtains official permits, takes care of questions of financing and profitability and also selects the appropriate components and even the craftsmen. In addition, SRS covers the entire costs of installation and operation, including warranty, maintenance and care – the companies themselves only pay for the electricity they use at a fixed electricity price over the selected contract period. The customer can take over the PV system annually at contractually agreed costs, even during the term.
With this solution with SRS, companies can save half of their electricity costs and are independent of increasing network fees, levies, levies and taxes. SRS also offers the storage solutions mentioned – and thus offers companies an all-round, worry-free package that can also cover peak consumption times. Unlike other providers, SRS attaches great importance to the economic viability of the storage solution. Free, professional storage design and energy flow simulation ensures that the storage size is tailored precisely to the needs of the company and thus offers maximum benefit at minimum costs.
The SRS group of companies has already implemented over 550 projects in the field of photovoltaics and is successfully active in four countries with over 800 employees.
