The future Danish energy system is expected to be dominated by renewable energy sources that primarily generate electricity. We must therefore switch to an energy system in which electricity accounts for a far larger share of energy consumption than today.

Denmark’s existing energy system is not geared to handle large amounts of electricity from fluctuating, renewable energy sources that, put simply, only generates electricity when the wind is blowing and the sun is shining.

There is therefore a need for a more intelligent and flexible energy system – a Smart Grid – that can provide the optimum balance between energy generation and energy consumption.

DONG Energy is developing a nationwide Smart Grid that is to enable us to utilise all the energy that offshore wind and the other renewable energy sources generate. 

Intelligent electricity meters, time-controlled charging of electric cars and other electricity-consuming appliances and decentralised heating using electric powered heat pumps are some of the many initiatives that are needed to make electricity consumption more flexible.

The development of a Smart Grid also assumes the development of Denmark’s power links to the North European electricity market to enable us to optimise our utilisation of our renewable energy and export and import more electricity when we have a surplus or a deficit of electricity from, primarily, wind power.

Our iPower, eFlex and Power Hub projects all focus on creating an intelligent infrastructure across energy systems in order to create the basis for a Smart Grid.

EDISON, the Better Place electric car concept, green gas and Micro CHP activities, combination of solar and wind energy and activities in solar cells and wave energy, on the other hand, are initiatives that help create the flexibility via, for example, energy storage that is a perquisite of a Smart Grid based on renewable energy.