Germany's smart connections

The global energy system is entering a new, more collaborative phase. And Germany is leading the change, explains Andreas Kuhlmann, Chief Executive of the Deutsche Energie-Agentur (DENA)

Energy transition is entering a new phase. This is especially apparent in countries like Germany, where renewable sources of energy have already gained a considerable foothold in the market. The question now is, how do we get all the different parts of the energy system connected in a smart way? And how do we foster innovation that serves this cause? The term "energy transition"—or Energiewende as we say in German—refers to a major change in our energy system. In Germany, it started at some point in the 1980s, through developing alternative energy scenarios and producing power from wind and solar. A real push came in 2000, when Germany passed the feed-in tariff law—known as the Renewable Ene