Balancing group management
Settlement of balancing groups deviations
The average kilowatt-hour rate resulting from the actual input of control energy to cover the total net amount per 15 minutes forms the basis for settling the deviations of each balancing group. If more power is consumed than scheduled, the balancing group supervisor pays Amprion the predefined kilowatt-hour rate. A balancing group manager feeding an excessive amount of electricity into the system is in principle paid the same kilowatt-hour rate.
Due to the logic of this system, prices can only be published in retrospect. After the relevant months have passed, prices may be checked at "Prices".
Control energy is exclusively reserved for maintaining security and reliability of the transmission system and is therefore not available for any energy disposition. A remuneration of a surplus of energy takes only place if there are no clues about abusive additional feed-in. A surplus energy feed-in is basically abusive if it cannot be justified by prognosis inaccuracies of customer loads. In particular, additional feed-in is abusive if
- it is of systematic nature, so that the arithmetic average value of all negative and positive differences is positive to a greater extent,
- it is based on a reduction of customer load, which is not corrected by the adjustment of supply-schedules, also in cases of a short-time reduction,
- it results from missing attention in the creation of supply-schedules when the modification of production behaviour or supplier change by customers is not considered.
If necessary, further circumstances have to be classified as abuse.
Likewise short supply in a balancing group is only admissible if it is based on prognosis inaccuracies of customer load. The balancing group contract can be terminated when a short supply was intended or tacitly approved. In particular, this is the case if energy short supply
- is of systematic nature, so that the arithmetic average value of all negative and positive differences is negative to a greater extent,
- results from a power station failure that has not been covered by a suitable reserve strategy,
- results from missing attention in the creation of supply schedules, when the modification of production behaviour or supplier change of customers is not considered.
Balancing group management fees
Presently, no fees are charged for the management of the balancing group.
Transportation fees
Costs of transports of electric energy in the high-voltage grid inside Germany are socialised among the network users.
Cross-border energy exchanges are subject to the ETSO-CBT system. Accordingly, the CBT fee for the exchange of electrical energy between countries participating in the ETSO-CBT system will no longer be applicable as of January 1, 2004.
The following countries are presently participating in the ETSO-CBT system (as at July 1, 2004): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
As France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria and Switzerland, neighboring the control area of Amprion, also take part in the ETSO-CBT system, no CBT fee will be charged for energy exports from the control area of Amprion to these countries as of January 1, 2004.
The CBT fee charged for energy imports from countries not participating in the CBT system continues to be 1 EUR/MWh.
Transports from or to neighboring countries are carried out by the neighboring TSO.
Transports that affect published congestions in the grid are charged with a separat price. Such congestions are published on this website under Network Constraints. More details about prices and procedures can also be found there.
Renewable Energy Act
The TSOs’ previous, monthly, continuous electricity supplies (renewables share) to any electricity trader and any balancing group supervisor supplying end consumers in the control area will be dropped from 1 January 2010 based on the German Ordinance on the Further Development of the Nationwide Equalisation Scheme. This ordinance includes new rules concerning the "Wälzungsmechanismus" coordination system of the German Renewable Energy Act (REA). From 1 January 2010, any TSO will be obliged under section 2, subsection 1 of the Equalisation Scheme Ordinance to market the electricity paid for per section 16 or 35 REA in a non-discriminatory and transparent way.
Further information for traders and suppliers on balancing groups or balancing group agreements and supplier framework agreements are available at