The German state of Baden-Württemberg has put the population on red alert for one hour on Dec. 7, asking them to abstain from intense electricity use from 2 to 3 pm, through its “StromGedacht” App. The App has a 24h clock using color coded indications to show the electricity supply during the day: green for good, yellow for sufficient and red for critical. The last stage “was reached in the night of Tuesday (Dec. 6), when colleagues in TransnetBW’s main switchboard ordered more than 700 MW for redispatch measures abroad. This was to alleviate a tense grid situation forecast for Wednesday between 2 and 3 pm. In this situation, it made sense to bring forward or delay the demand for electricity into the morning,” an announcement on the TransnetBW provider says.
“Redispatching abroad"? Where abroad is Germany sending electricity these days? There is one giant demand of electricity: from Ukraine, which has been connected to the European grid since 2021. Is Germany—maybe not alone—supplying electricity to Ukraine via Poland? The winter has barely begun and the electricity supply is already reaching critical stages. An Arctic blast is expected to descend over Europe this week and EU member states have enough trouble managing their energy scarcity.
Baden-Württemberg is the leading German export state, the one with the lowest official unemployment, the fourth highest per-capita GDP and with the highest absolute and relative number of R&D patents. Its Stuttgart is the home of Porsche and Mercedes automakers.
