Research projects
Ongoing projects
eMob-cold+V2G: Repercussions of electromobility at extreme temperatures in distribution networks
Duration: November 2023 - October 2025
Project coordination: Fraunhofer-Institut für Energiewirtschaft und Energiesystemtechnik IEE
Project partners: Fraunhofer-Institut für Energiewirtschaft und Energiesystemtechnik IEE, Universität Kassel, Volkswagen AG - Group Innovation Energy Systems (K-AERE/S), Stadtwerke Wiesbaden Netz GmbH, EAM Netz GmbH
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Mikroökonomik und empirische Energieökonomik (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK)
Summary:
The very dynamic market development of electromobility in Germany shows a robust trend towards fully electric vehicles (BEV) (target 15 million in 2030). At the same time, a strong increase in air source heat pumps is expected in neighborhoods with a high number of private charging points. This combination creates particular challenges for integration into the electricity distribution grids. While there are only limited degrees of freedom for load reduction in extreme situations with air source heat pumps due to the respective inertia of the building, the technical range of possible grid integration is significantly greater with electromobility.
The Chair of Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics is using an extensive Germany-wide survey to determine the acceptance and willingness to pay of private households for the provision of grid-supporting flexibility and the connection between this willingness and socio-demographic, technical and psychological characteristics as well as social norms. Based on this, possible incentives for the provision of grid-supportive flexibility for different user/customer groups are developed and evaluated. Finally, the feasible flexibility potential of households is quantified.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
SDG+ Lab - "Labor for Sustainability", Theme year 1: "Transformations in Energy & Environment (2023/2024)"
Duration: January 2023 - December 2024
Project coordination: UniKasselTransfer
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics(Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Urban Regeneration and Planning Theory (Prof. Dr. Uwe Altrock)
Sustainability Management (Prof. Dr. Stefan Gold)
Art and Economies (Prof. Dr. Mi You)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
Project website: https://www.uni-kassel.de/einrichtung/ukt/sdgplus-lab
Summary:
With the project "SDG+ Lab" UniKasselTransfer develops a laboratory for sustainability issues. The project aims to bring together stakeholders from science, politics, business, and (civil) society to discuss pressing challenges of our time and to design concrete innovative solutions, especially for the region of Northern Hesse. The project is carried out in cooperation with UniKasselTransfer, various departments of the University of Kassel, and social actors from Kassel.
Within the sub-project "Transformations in Energy & Environment", the Chair of Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics is preparing and implementing several "pop-up district stores" as real laboratories. In this way, low-threshold participation offers are created in the centers of urban society to integrate different population groups into the transformation process toward climate neutrality. In the areas of energy, mobility, buildings, and consumption, climate-friendly action alternatives and product solutions can be experienced and approaches for more self-efficacy in climate protection will be tested. In particular, the project aims to address those population groups that have had insufficient contact with climate and environmental protection issues to date.
To identify effective instruments and methods for promoting sustainable energy and environmental behavior according to target groups, the effectiveness of different interventions will be analyzed and measured within the framework of the real laboratories. In addition, different population groups will be activated and local "communities of practice" (e.g. district working groups, parent initiatives, networks) will be established.
Contact
Lioba Kucharczak
Phone: +49 561 804-7942
E-Mail: l.kucharczak[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
FLAMME: Fairness, burden sharing and acceptance of tenancy law for energy efficiency retrofits
Duration: August 2022 - Juli 2025
Project coordination: Universität Kassel
Projekt partners: German Environment Agency, ITG Institute for Building Systems Engineering Dresden Research and Application GmbH; FIW Munich
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Unit of Foundations of Law, Private Law, and the Economic Analysis of Law (Prof. Dr. Georg von Wangenheim)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK), funding priority „Energy Transition and Society “ of the seventh Energy Research Program
Summary:
To increase energy efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions as part of the energy transition, extensive investments are required in the residential building stock. The use of low-emission heat sources and the implementation of insulation measures to reduce heat losses are necessary. The required investment costs, but also the associated heating cost savings as well as increases in living comfort, must be shared between landlords and tenants. The project FLAMME develops rental and heating cost law options for the distribution of costs and benefits from energy-efficient modernizations and examines them with regard to their distribution effect and acceptance. FLAMME is based on an interdisciplinary approach with legal-economic, engineering and empirical analyses.
The Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics determines, on the basis of extensive nationwide surveys, which preferences tenants, private landlords and, for comparative purposes, owner-occupiers have with regard to the characteristics of the distribution systems and retrofit options investigated. Institutional landlords are also asked about their preferences regarding the characteristics of distribution systems and their retrofit options under different framework conditions. The analysis of specific modernization projects will be used to draw conclusions about these preferences.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
unIT-e2 – Real Lab for Networked E-Mobility
Duration: August 2021 - January 2025
Project coordination: Forschungsgesellschaft für Energiewirtschaft (FfE)
Project partners: Bayernwerk Netz GmbH, BMW AG, Consolinno Energy GmbH, EAM Netz GmbH, EEBUS Initiative e.V., EWE GO GmbH, EWE NETZ GmbH, FfE e.V., FfE GmbH, Flavia IT Management GmbH, Ford Werke GmbH, Fraunhofer SIT, Kostal Industrie Elektrik GmbH, Lechwerke AG, Mercedes Benz AG, Power Plus Communications AG, Regionalmanagement Nordhessen GmbH, RWTH Aachen, Schneider Electric GmbH, Stadtwerke Düsseldorf AG Stadtwerke München GmbH, Stiftung Umweltenergierecht, TenneT TSO GmbH, The Mobility House GmbH, Universität Duisburg-Essen, Universität Kassel, Universität Passau, Viessmann Climate Solutions SE, Volkswagen AG Group Innovation
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Technology, Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship (Prof. Dr. Patrick Spieth)
Foundations of Law, Private Law, and the Economic Analysis of Law (Prof. Dr. Georg von Wangenheim)
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK)
Project website: www.unit-e2.de
Summary:
The project "unIT-e² - Real Lab for Networked E-Mobility" addresses the many challenges necessary for the widespread use of e-mobility as a building block of the energy transition. With unIT-e², real laboratories are created that offer a neutral framework for stakeholders with sometimes competing interests. Therein, solutions can be jointly developed under scientific supervision without postponing the individual entrepreneurial goals. One objective is to demonstrate interoperable solutions for holistically optimized integration into the energy system. In addition to the technical and IT developments that form the basis for the mass application of electric mobility (e-mobility), user acceptance is of outstanding importance. In this context, individual preferences and the design of legal framework conditions play a decisive role.
The sub-project "Behavioral and Legal Economic Analyses" at the University of Kassel aims to research user behavior in the context of e-mobility use in general and charging behavior in particular. The research focuses on incentive systems to influence the charging behavior. With a combination of conceptual design, field experiments, and representative empirical studies, comprehensive and at the same time practical results are generated, which are relevant as a basis for the design of tariffs and products of the practice partners, but also for the further development of the current legal framework.
Objective in detail:
- Behavioral economic studies of charging behavior, especially in the context of the interaction of user preferences with the requirements of the electricity grid
- Microeconomic and behavioral analysis of the incentive effects of different contract and tariff designs ("behavioral law and economics")
- Analysis of adoption barriers in the different phases of the adoption process and identification of measures to reduce barriers
- Development of different tariff and contract designs and comparison of these with regard to legal admissibility, incentive effects and benefits for companies and households.
Contact
Larissa Fait
Phone: +49 561 804-1959
E-Mail: larissa.fait[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
OwnPV-Outlook - PV self-consumption as an efficient, sustainable and robust element of the future energy system, sub-project: User behaviour and grid planning
Duration: February 2021 - October 2024
Project coordination: Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology IEE
Project partners: Foundation for Environmental Energy Law, Thüga Aktiengesellschaft, Avacon Netz GmbH, RheinEnergie AG
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Energy Management and Power System Operation (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Martin Braun)
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK)
Summary:
The project "OwnPV-Outlook" investigates the integration of a growing number of PV self-supply systems in the German electricity system. For this purpose, possible and probable development paths will be evaluated with regard to the increasing use of rooftop PV systems, electric cars, heat pumps and home energy management systems in private households and small as well as medium-sized enterprises. The aim of the project is to narrow down the range of possible development paths and to evaluate these paths according to criteria such as efficiency, sustainability and robustness.
The Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics evaluates (potential) user behaviour and determines economically feasible potentials for PV self-supply systems of private households and businesses in the future. For this purpose, a series of representative surveys and customer surveys in cooperation with the associated distribution network operators will be conducted. Based on the survey data, individual preferences and the willingness to pay will be derived for different use cases and the effects of incentives will be analysed to enable a optimization of microeconomic models. The results will be incorporated into strategic recommendations for the design of regulatory framework conditions, business models and energy system services.
Contact
Lioba Kucharczak
Phone: +49 561 804-7942
E-Mail: l.kucharczak[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Beate Fischer
Phone: +49 561 804-7941
E-Mail: b.fischer[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Completed projects
LESS is More (Local Emission Saving System): Tangible decarbonization of the economy and society in a field test in Kassel - transparency, participation and individual action supported by the instrument of digitalization
Duration: January 2021 - December 2023
Project coordination: House of Energy e.V.
Project partners: Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology (IEE), deENet Competence Network Distributed Energy Technologies e. V., twigbit technologies GmbH
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
BMBF junior research group “DeCarbFriends”
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK)
Project website: www.klimo.app
Summary:
The project "LESS is more" aims to support the sustainable thinking and acting of citizens in Kassel and to integrate and initiate regional climate protection projects. The project partners are the University of Kassel, the Fraunhofer IEE, the competence network deENet and the Berlin startup twigbit. The city of Kassel and companies based in the region support the project.
The project focuses on the development of an app in which users can record their individual CO2 emissions and compare them with their monthly budget. The app will continuously report back on the effects of one's own actions and thus show everyone directly how much CO2 emissions he or she is currently causing and what options exist for reducing them. This includes pointing out energy-saving options or offers to offset parts of one's own CO2 emissions by supporting regional climate protection projects. By doing so, all users receive a basis for planning their individual CO2 reduction.
The app will be developed during the first year of the project and will then be available for download. The experience gained in using the app is intended to make it possible to transfer the approach to other municipalities. To this end, the focus of the Chair of “Applied Microeconomics and empirical Energy Economics” at the University of Kassel is on the analysis of in-app-user behavior by the means of behavioral economic techniques.
Contact
Gregor Feine
Phone: +49 561 804-1903
E-Mail: gregor.feine[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
EXIST-Start-Up grant: climactivity
Duration: October 2021 - September 2022
Start-Up team: Melanie Bartels, Johannes Dabringhausen, Dr. Ulrich Wischnath
EXIST-Mentor: Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK)
Website: www.climactivity.de
Summary:
The majority of people in Germany consider the topic of climate protection to be important, but at the same time it is very difficult to change habitual lifestyles. This is where the climactivity team comes in with its program, which consists of three components: The climactivity app guides users to the points where particularly much can be done for climate protection and then encourages them to set personal goals in each of these areas. In addition, users can network in their own climactivity social network in their region, come together for joint actions, record their personal climate footprints, and share successes with others. These two features are complemented by an on-site event model that is highly scalable due to its analog-digital layout.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Perspektiven BED: Innovative concepts and business models for bioenergy villages - climate friendly, democratic, and close to the people
Duration: February 2019 - April 2022
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Project partners: Georg-August-University Göttingen, Chair of Cartography, GIS and Remote Sensing Section
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Solar and Systems Engineering (Prof. Dr. Klaus Vajen)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture
Project website: www.energiewendedörfer.de
Summary:
The main goal of the project is to prepare the German bioenergy villages for the time period when the earnings based on the Renewable Energy Act will end after 20 years of a guaranteed electricity feed in tariff. In an interdisciplinary project team, processes which can be transferred to existing bioenergy villages will be developed as a kind of blue print and thus offer opportunities for a continuation of their business operations. The core area of the project is a catalogue of measures that are prepared in theory first and afterwards are evaluated in two real-life labs. The main focus of the measures is on the one hand to put into use residual materials and wastes, ecologically optimized crop growing and on the other hand the implementation of regional green electricity marketing, using regional markets for flexible electricity dispatch as well as combining bioenergy with additional renewable energy technologies. Further information can be found on the project homepage.
Structure: At first, interdisciplinary research results and existing innovative concepts will be collected, analyzed and then transformed into a set of measures which is focused on the following areas:
- Recycling: Increasing the share of farm manure, food production- and harvest residue as well as communal biomass. Integration of agricultural and communal stakeholders to establish delivery stations for reusable biomass with the aim to increase the degree of material utilization. This utilization can be either energetic (e.g. power, heat, fuel, Methane) or substance-based and should take place in a decentralized/regional environment. To achieve this, a network of regional partners needs to be established so to organize logistics and management of delivery, processing as well as marketing. Furthermore, options will be presented on how existing farming practices can be optimized ecologically and adapted to meet the challenges of climate change.
- Regional marketing of renewable electricity: Establishing regional products of green energy to sell electricity produced from renewable sources by incorporating regional partners such as energy cooperatives, municipal utilities and other relevant corporations.
- Marketing of electricity in regional flexibility-markets: Researching additional options to create revenue on the flexibility of the power generation from biogas plants by selling it via regional flexibility-markets.
- Incorporation of additional technologies: Adjusting the existing heating networks to the changing technological framework by means of additional heat sources and storage systems.
These measures are prepared in theory first and afterwards evaluated within two real-life-labs. Then, with the help of an advisory board, the practicability of those measures will be analyzed. The first real-life-lab consist of the two bioenergy villages Wollbrandshausen and Krebeck which are connected through one conjoint biogas plant and several combined heat and power units. Over the course of the project a second real-life-lab will be chosen in order to review those measures which could not be applied in the first one but are considered significant for further development of bioenergy villages. An advisory board consisting of 20 bioenergy villages will be established and given the task to reflect on the results of the research and deliver suggestions on how to implement the measures in the real-life-labs.
After evaluation, a guideline and an interactive communication platform will be created, in order to distribute the research results and to interconnect relevant stakeholders.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
DeGeb: Decarbonization of the building space heating sector
Duration: November 2018 - July 2022
Project coordination: Agora Energiewende Berlin
Project partners: Fraunhofer Institute for Energy Economics and Energy System Technology (IEE) Kassel
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Economics of Law (Prof. Dr. Andreas Ziegler)
Empirical Economic Research, Foundations of Law, Private Law (Prof. Dr. Georg von Wangenheim)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), second phase of the funding priority "Economics of Climate Change" ("Ökonomie des Klimawandels")
Summary:
Heating residential and non-residential buildings is one of the substantial sources of CO2 emissions. Buildings and heating systems are long-lasting goods that are prone to path dependencies, which turn decarbonisation into a challenge. The impact of available options like energy efficiency and renewable energies depends on whether they are actually chosen by home owners. Hence, the impact mainly depends on incentive structures and the underlying regulatory framework. Apart from public law, this mainly refers to private law which governs relationships between actors like landlords and tenants, owners and communities of owners, and providers of heating systems or heat grids. Within the scope of the project, impacts of micro incentives on the energy system transformation in the building sector are examined, the role of corresponding regulatory frameworks is analysed, opportunities for stimulating sustainable investment decisions are assessed, and policy implications are derived. The objective of the project is a comparison of the aggregate impact of different regulatory frameworks in the decarbonisation of the building heat sector.
Dialogue on the Economics of Climate Change: DeGeb is one of the research projects within the framework of the funding priority Economics of Climate Change II. These are interlinked by the project Dialogue of the Economics of Climate Change, which supports the funding priority. This promotes the active transfer of knowledge between the projects and intensifies the exchange between research and practice.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
BeSmart: Smart-metering and dynamic electricity tariffing: energy consumption choices, regulatory policies and welfare effects
Duration: November 2018 - July 2022
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Project partners: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK)
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Economics of Law (Prof. Dr. Andreas Ziegler)
Empirical Economic Research, Foundations of Law, Private Law (Prof. Dr. Georg von Wangenheim)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Education an Research (BMBF), second phase of the funding priority "Economics of Climate Change" ("Ökonomie des Klimawandels")
Summary:
Dynamic electricity pricing and smart-grids are key elements of the vital transformation towards a decarbonized power production. Integrating volatile produced renewable electricity at large-scale will require electricity users, who adapt their consumption to the available electricity supply, particularly if energy sectors are coupled. Via price signals this consumption adjustment can be achieved. Economists have long been in favor of dynamic pricing, while it has rarely been implemented so far. Although recent technological progress has made it economically and technologically feasible, consumers’ acceptance remains a crucial barrier to a widespread implementation.
The objective of this project is to develop economic and legal solutions to raise the social acceptance of dynamic pricing schemes and thereby to unlock the potential of demand-side flexibility in wind and solar power dominated energy systems. Against this background, this project aims to provide practical advice to regulators, utilities and retail firms in addressing consumers’ acceptance of dynamic tariffs.
Structure: The interdisciplinary composition of the project team allows the integration of three basic research streams. First, by exploiting law and behavioral economic approaches, one of the core tasks within BeSmart is to develop a model of behaviorally biased electricity retail contract choices and its numerical application in scenario-based electricity market analyses.
Second, the microeconometric research within BeSmart provides the empirical underpinning of the behavioral tariff choice model. The empirical part of the project hence seeks to test theoretical model hypotheses based on data from a representative household survey. Moreover, the stated choice experiments included in the survey will provide data on crucial decision-making parameters needed for the calibration of the numerical models. The survey will further allow the identification of important psychological determinants of households’ preferences for electricity contract designs, which could be risk preferences or environmental awareness. Furthermore, specific types of customers can potentially be identified for whom dynamic electricity tariffs are particularly appealing or not.
Third, besides assessing pecuniary instruments, BeSmart also investigates the relevance and effects of non-pecuniary measures on customers’ retail tariff choices such as the salience in customer protection laws, data security aspects and contract design. These “legal remedies”, the effectiveness of which will be elicited in the household survey, are thus an essential part of the theoretical and scenario-based analyses. Thereby, BeSmart ensures application-oriented research, which aims to design legal instruments to correct potentially flawed retail tariff choices.
Project progress:
17.01.2019 - Project Kick-off meeting
On 17.01.2019, a first meeting of all project partners took place. Its central focus lay on the scope and coordination of interlinkages between the working packages. In addition, all relevant organizational aspects were discussed.
12.-14.06.2019 - Kick-off Event of the BMBF Projects under the Framework "Economics of Climate Change"
From 12.06 to 14.06, the kick-off conference for the Dialogue on Economics of Climate Change took place. In this context, all projects of the network were presented. The conference offered our project members the great opportunity to exchange ideas with other scientists and to explore thematic intersections between the different projects.
27.11.2019 - First joint meeting with the BeSmart advisory board
The first joint meeting with the BeSmart advisory board and second BeSmart research workshop was conducted on 27.11.2019. The workshop was held at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Furthermore, the workshop was divided into two parts. In the first block, participants discussed microeconomic models that focus on the effect of dynamic electricity tariffs on consumption behavior and the choice of tariffs. The second block of the workshop highlighted factors influencing the choice of electricity tariffs, which will be investigated in the empirical studies.
19.11.2020 - Second internal BeSmart Workshop
The third official (second internal) BeSmart Workshop was conducted on 19.11.2020. Due to the Covid19-pandemic, it was held it online. All project partners were present. Again, this workshop consisted of two thematic sessions. In the first block, the latest progress with respect to the microeconometric models, which aim to predict consumers' preferences for (dynamic) electricity tariffs, was discussed. In the second block, the representative household survey was discussed and enhanced, especially with regard to links between the working packages.
01.06.2021 - Second joint meeting with the BeSmart advisory board
The second joint meeting with the BeSmart advisory board and fourth BeSmart research workshop was conducted on 01.06.2021. Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the workshop could not take place at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. Instead, it was held online. Besides all project partners, the project coordinator from the DLR, and seven members form the advisory board, six interested listeners joint the workshop. In line with previous events, the workshop was divided into two parts. In the former part, we presented the data obtained from the representative household survey, which was conducted early 2021. Furthermore, we discussed first empirical results. In the latter part, we discussed preliminary results with respect to the qualitative and quantitative welfare analysis of electricity tariff choices.
08.04.2022 - Third joint meeting with the BeSmart advisory board / Final BeSmart Workshop
The third and last meeting with the BeSmart advisory board took place on 08.04.2022. Contrary to the original planning, which included a larger live event at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, this workshop had to take place in an online format. In addition to all project partners, five members of the research advisory board were present. In total, the workshop consisted of four presentations, which provided insights into results from the different working packages. After each presentation, there was enough time for intensive discussions, which especially identified the practical relevance of the work. This was also emphasized by the participants in the final open discussion. For the BeSmart project team, this final workshop was a successful project close-out, which at the same time gave new impulses for current and future research projects
Dialogue on the Economics of Climate Change: BeSmart is one of the research projects within the framework of the funding priority Economics of Climate Change II. These are interlinked by the project Dialogue of the Economics of Climate Change, which supports the funding priority. This promotes the active transfer of knowledge between the projects and intensifies the exchange between research and practice.
Contact
Victor von Loessl
Phone: +49 561 804-7706
E-Mail: vonloessl[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
EcoEff: Macroeconomic Inefficiency and Emission Reduction Potentials: Accounting for Heterogeneous Industry Structures
Duration: December 2018 - November 2021
Project coordination: Darmstadt University of Technology, Chair of Empirical Economics
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), second phase of the funding priority "Economics of Climate Change" („Ökonomie des Klimawandels“)
Summary:
The joint project EcoEff ("Macroeconomic Inefficiency and Emission Reduction Potentials: Accounting for Heterogeneous Industry Structures") deals with reduction potentials of harmful greenhouse gas emissions in the most important industrial sectors in Germany and the EU member states. Therefore, the explicit consideration of country-specific industrial structures and the unbundling into sector-specific and structural inefficiencies enables to identify the temporal dimension of reduction potentials. These are classified as short-, medium- or long-term. In addition, greenhouse gases are also considered in a differentiated way, allowing pollutant-specific challenges to be analyzed.
On the basis of the identified inefficiencies and industry and pollutant-specific emissions, detailed abatement costs can be derived. This further allows to determine the costs of complete decarbonization. In this way, important conclusions can be drawn for the cost differences in emission reduction between industries and nations.
Following the empirical studies, scenarios will be developed how inefficiencies and abatement costs will develop in the future. Based on this, an evaluation of the climate protection goals of the European Union for 2030 and 2050 will follow with regard to feasibility and costs.
Dialogue on the Economics of Climate Change: EcoEff is one of the research projects within the framework of the funding priority Economics of Climate Change II. These are interlinked by the project Dialogue of the Economics of Climate Change, which supports the funding priority. This promotes the active transfer of knowledge between the projects and intensifies the exchange between research and practice.
Contact
Larissa Fait
Phone: +49 561 804-1959
E-Mail: larissa.fait[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
E-Mobility-LAB Hesse: EFRE-joint project E-Mobility-LAB Hesse
Duration: October 2018 - September 2021
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair for Vehicle Systems and Foundations of Electric Engineering (Prof. Dr. Ludwig Brabetz)
Project partners: Opel Automobile GmbH (Rüsselsheim), FLAVIA IT-Management GmbH (Kassel) and PLUG'n CHARGE (Bad Emstal)
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Chair for Vehicle Systems and Foundations of Electric Engineering (Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Ludwig Brabetz)
Chair for Communication Technology (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Klaus David)
Funding institution: IWB-EFRE-Programm Hessen
Summary:
The research project E-Mobility-LAB Hesse aims to build a diversified and intelligent charging infrastructure system for electric vehicles. This system shall ensure the operational charging of an electric vehicle fleet that is characterized by a high density of latest generation vehicles. For this purpose, Opel’s development center in Rüsselsheim will be arranged as a real-world laboratory. This pilot project allows depicting a mobility situation that will likely exist in 2035. Thereby, interactions between a diversified charging infrastructure, further developed electric vehicles and intelligent charging management can be detected, analyzed and optimized at an early stage.
The scientific support is characterized by the modeling of mobility- and charging behavior, the implementation of simulations and energy management studies on the effects of the charging infrastructure in an energy management system of the future. Overall, they will allow the derivation of recommendations for the rollout of electromobility in Hesse.
An overview of the project can be found in the Flyer(in German).
Main focus of the Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics: The core task of the Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics is the evaluation of the data and findings generated in the real-world laboratory. We carry out the assessment with particular consideration of future energy management systems. Furthermore, we investigate possible applications of the charging infrastructure as a provider of flexibility in energy supply. For this purpose, we consider energy markets in particular, such as the balancing power market, markets for distribution network flexibility or possible regional energy markets. The main objective is to link these partial aspects in order to derive comprehensive recommendations for the rollout of electric mobility in Hessen.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
C/sells: Large-scale flagship in the the solar regions of Southern Germany
Duration: January 2017 - March 2021
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Project partners: 41 partners (research partners, partners of the municipal area as well as industry)
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Chair for Intelligent Embedded Systems (Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Bernhard Sick)
Chair for Communication Technology (Prof. Dr.-Ing. Klaus David)
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi)
Project website: www.csells.net
Summary:
The "C/sells" project involves a large-scale flacship in the "Solarbogen Süddeutschland" (Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria and Hesse) model region, making it one of five major projects within the BMWi funding program "Schaufenster intelligente Energie - Digitale Agenda für die Energiewende (Sinteg)". The aim of the projects is to create a secure, economical and environmentally compatible future energy supply system, with a growing share of renewable energies. To this end, production, consumption, grid and market are to be networked through innovative technology and processes.
Within "C / sells", a cellular structured energy system ("Cells") is to be established, which allows all participating actors the possibility of economic participation ("sells"). In addition to the development of ICT technologies, the project is characterized by a series of concrete demonstration projects.
Three chairs of the University of Kassel (Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics, Intelligent Embedded Systems and Communication Technology) are involved in four different work packages of the project. They will contribute and deepen their existing competences in the fields of energy economy and energy technology to ensure the success of the project. In order to achieve the projects objectives, the chairs cooperate closely.
On the one hand, the chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics, working closely with the regional grid operator EnegieNetz Mitte, focuses on the development of a regional electricity market to provide flexibility in the distribution grid. This so-called "RegioFlex market" is to be implemented and tested in selected subnetworks. On the other hand, a regional electricity brand is being developed as an innovative marketing model, tailored to a future decentralized energy system.
See also: http://www.csells.net/ueber-c-sells/arbeitspakete.html
(The relevant work packages of the chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics are AP 6.6 and AP 7.2.1. The other chairs of the University of Kassel are also involved in the work packages AP 3.4 and AP 6.4.)
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
klimaGEN: Turning energy cooperatives into climate protection cooperatives
Duration: January 2017 - December 2019
Project coordination: University of Kassel
Project partners: DGRV - Deutscher Genossenschafts- und Raiffeisenverband e.V., deENet Kompetenznetzwerk dezentrale Energietechnologien e.V.
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB)
Project website: www.klimagen.de
Summary:
In Germany, approximately 900 energy cooperatives comprising 200,000 members have mainly been involved in the expansion of renewable energies within the last years. However, their potential for climate protection is much bigger. By developing new fields of activity such as energy efficiency, sufficiency and mobility they can strengthen their climate protection-impact. Furthermore, their regional and civic background allows for addressing a broad population with regard to climate-relevant behavior.
The project focuses on the strategic advancement of “energy cooperatives” towards “climate protection cooperatives”. The project appeals to managerial and active ordinary members of energy cooperatives as well as non-members in the region of the energy cooperatives. For three types of energy cooperatives surveys of members and non-members are planned. The results will allow identifying successful strategies for cooperative climate protection policies, which comprise commercial and non-commercial activities as well as innovative public relations measures. The policies will be realized and evaluated in at least nine energy cooperatives from the entire federal territory.
Contact
Lioba Kucharczak
Phone: +49 561 804-7942
E-Mail: l.kucharczak[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Beate Fischer
Phone: +49 561 804-7941
E-Mail: b.fischer[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Integrated Climate Protection Concept for the Municipality of Alheim
Duration: August 2018 - April 2019
Project partners: Climate and Energy Efficiency Agency (KEEA)
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMUB)
Funded by the BMUB within the framework of the National Climate Initiative the municipality of Alheim is developing an "Integrated Climate Protection Concept for the Municipality of Alheim". The University of Kassel is an implementation partner for the Climate Protection Concept.
Summary:
The integrated climate protection concept will detail current and potential areas of activity in the municipality of Alheim. Concrete measures will be developed with the involvement of the local actors to achieve the desired climate protection goal. The purpose of this is to develop an action guide as a strategic planning and practical working tool, which then serves as the basis for future activities and investments. In addition to the sustainable development of local potentials, the focus is primarily on the creation and further development of long-term structures for the stabilization of climate protection in Alheim.
The department contributes to the conception of climate protection with special emphasis in the areas of potential analysis and stakeholder participation as well as sufficiency measures and stabilization strategy.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Process design of the energy transition in North Hesse
Duration: January 2016 - March 2019
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Project partners: IdE Institute decentralized energy technologies
Funding institutions: cdw Foundation andMinistry of Economics, Energy, Transport and Regional Development of the Federal State of Hesse (HMWELV)
Summary:
The project „process design of the energy transition in North Hesse“ is part of the larger programme “Future showcase of the energy transition in Hesse”, whose aim is to support the regions of Hesse on the road to a 100 percent renewable energy energy system.
The project connects agents within and across districts and municipalities while supporting their set targets, plans and implementation efforts. Information and helpful tools, for instance a regional benchmarking-tool, are provided to all local key actors, such as majors, climate protection managers and departments relevant to the prevention of climate change. Especially the transfer of knowledge and the exchange of experiences between regions and municipalities, but also nationwide, shall thus be reinforced. Establishing competences and resources, for example by assisting the submission process of funding applications, is also one main target and shall insure an increase in implementation activities.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Region twinning for climate protection
Duration: December 2014 - December 2017
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Funding institutions: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) ("NKI - National initiative for climate protection")
Summary:
RegioTwin integrates “twinning” as a mutual learning principle into climate protection activities at communal and regional level for the first time in Germany. The model project tests and evaluates in how far close cooperation and know-how transfer between two or more municipalities, cities, or districts, catalyse the implementation of climate protection measures. Two different forms of twinning are being applied: twinning between regions (cooperation between experienced/ consulting partner and learning/ implementing partner) and twinning around a specific set of measures (implementation of best practice). With a mixture of low-threshold, well-proven, but also innovative climate protection measures, the project seeks to engage particularly those municipalities and regions that are relatively new in the field of climate protection.
A further building block of the project is to increase the number of energy- and climate-active model regions in Germany, to gather new members for the existing German network of model regions, and to contribute to new applications and business models in climate protection strategies. Additionally, an exchange of know-how between German and Austrian model regions is launched in the project. The idea is to build cross-border partnerships at regional level, on the one hand, and to exchange experiences at the level of model region networks, on the other hand.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
EXIST-Start-Up grant: prosumergy
Duration: January 2017 - December 2017
Start-Up team: Freya Lena Cielejewski, Daniel Netter, Christopher Neumann
EXIST-Mentor: Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Funding institution: Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi)
Project website: www.prosumergy.de
Summary:
prosumergy brings the benefits of solar power self-consumption, previously enjoyed almost exclusively by homeowners, to tenants in apartment buildings. Thanks to prosumergy, landlords, even those of small houses, can invest in a system on their roof and benefit from an attractive return on investment without having to deal with the extensive energy management obligations involved in supplying electricity to building users. As a full-service provider, prosumergy offers an all-round carefree package from the suitability test of the building to the delivery of electricity to the building users.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Masterplan for the District Giessen
Duration: August 2016 - April 2017
Project partners: Climate and Energy Efficiency Agency (KEEA)
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB)
The district of Giessen is taking part in the programme „100% Masterplan for Climate Protection“. Its masterplan is elaborated among others by the University of Kassel.
Summary:
The masterplan aims are quite ambitious: final energy consumption shall be reduced by 50% and GHG emissions by 95% until 2050 with the baseyear 1990. All sectors are covered, thus electricity,heat, transport as well as households, commerce, agriculture and industry. With these goals, masterplan regions are front-runners for the indispensable implementation of the same strategy on federal level.
The chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics contributes to the district´s activities. The respective work package covers the creation of an energy and greenhouse gas balance, the calculation of reduction and renewable expansion potentials and the scenario development used to achieve the targets.
After the completion of the masterplan, the municipality will have a period of three years to implement first measures and to establish a monitoring system, aimed at supporting the process during the years to come.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Japan-Twinning
Duration: August 2016 - February 2017
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Funding institution: German Federal Environment Agency
Summary:
After the nuclear accident in Fukushima in 2011, a political and technical discussion about the future energy supply evolved in Japan. A vast majority of the population supports the nuclear power phase-out. In 2014, the liberalization of the Japanese electricity Market was resolved. Since April 1st 2016, Japanese consumers, too, have the option to choose their electricity provider. Many suppliers offer energy from renewable sources, municipalities and prefectures also think about changing their electricity system by energy efficiency measures. Experience in this sector, especially by German municipalities, are highly appreciated and demanded. In May 2016, an agreement was reached between the German and Japanese Ministry of the Environment on climate protection and energy, which also focused on supporting cooperation between local governments and businesses. In this context, the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety in cooperation with the German Embassy in Japan, sent a German delegation with 25 participants to Japan to enable a German-Japanese exchange on the energy transition. The delegation trip was partly financed by the German Federal Environment Agency with the project presented here and Mr. Niederle from the department of "Renewable Energies" was closely involved in the organization. Between the municipal representives of the district of Munich and the prefecture of Kyoto, the cities of Frankfurt and Yokohama as well as the district of Marburg-Biedenkopf and the prefecture of Iwate, a professional exchange on the topics of climate protection and renewable energies was prepared and conducted. Upon the invitation of the organizers of the World Wind Energy Conference (WWEC) in Tokyo and the First World Community Power Conference (WCPC) in Fukushima and as part of this project, workshops were organized and implemented at these conferences. A German-Japanese Delegation workshop was held as a side-event to the WCPC on November 4th 2016, in order to intensify the collaboration between German and Japanese municipalities.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
EnGeno - Transformation potentials of Energy cooperatives
Duration: May 2013 - December 2016
Project coordination: Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg
Project partners: UFZ Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research Leipzig, Eduard Pestel Institut Hannover
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
Summary:
The production, use and distribution of energy in Germany have been ruled by monopolies for a long time and avenues for democratic participation were rare. Decentralised energy cooperatives are the expression of citizens’ strong will to take part in this important part of their lives. The stakeholders’ reasons to take part are manifold (economic, social, political). The ultimate objective of this government-funded project is the estimation and description of the transformation potential energy cooperatives have on the energy system on the micro and macro level. Another aim is the development of information material and to offer consultation. ENGENO analyses the emergence, stabilisation and diffusion of energy cooperatives. It deals with stakeholders, management processes and the general institutional framework. Five different inter- and trans disciplinary sub-goals are distinguished: Qualitative estimation of local innovation impulses from energy cooperatives for energy safety and energy use and the promotion of fossil-free energy sources (development of a scenario) Quantitative and qualitative estimation of the willingness for participation in energy cooperatives and the scope for ecologically compatible lifestyles (sustainable lifestyles) Depiction of success factors, strategic orientations and examples of good practice business models (energy cooperatives as sustainable forms of enterprise) Appraisal and field mapping of energy cooperatives in Germany (map of energy cooperatives). Analysis of the emergence, stabilisation and diffusion of energy cooperatives Development of recommendations for communication, networking and the general framework of energy cooperatives.
Contact
Lioba Kucharczak
Phone: +49 561 804-7942
E-Mail: l.kucharczak[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Beate Fischer
Phone: +49 561 804-7941
E-Mail: b.fischer[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Development of a planning tool for climate municipalities
Duration: May 2013 - April 2016
Project coordination: Klima-Bündnis Frankfurt
Project partners: Institut für Energie- und Umweltforschung Heidelberg
Funding institution: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) ("NKI - National initiative for climate protection")
Project website (in German): www.klimaschutzplaner.de
Summary:
This project develops a standardized set of tools for municipalities and regions to get them involved into climate protection and assist them with the initiation and implementation of climate protection concepts. The toolset consists of the modules balancing, benchmark and scenario development. The main tasks of IdE/ University of Kassel cover the latter, including determination of potentials for renewable energies, creation of scenarios and a matrix of actions and regional value creation figures of an improved renewable energy supply in electricity, heat and efficiency.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
Sustainable Consumption - An Empirical Analysis of Determinants and Effects
Duration: August 2014 - November 2015
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Empirical Economic Research (Prof. Dr. Andreas Ziegler)
Partners at the University of Kassel:
Agricultural and Food Marketing (Prof. Dr. Ulrich Hamm)
Verkehrsplanung und Verkehrssysteme (Prof. Dr. Carsten Sommer)
Energy Economics (Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel)
Environmental and Behavioral Economics (Prof. Dr. Astrid Dannenberg)
Solar and System Engineering (Prof. Dr. Klaus Vajen)
Öffentliches Recht, insbesondere Umwelt- und Technikrecht (Prof. Dr. Alexander Roßnagel)
Funding institution: Central research promotion (ZFF) of the University of Kassel
Summary:
Private consumption of goods and services is responsible for a large share of environmental impacts. The aim of this project is to empirically investigate the determinants (such as attitudes and motivations) of sustainable consumption behavior as well as possible interactions with the supply side in an interdisciplinary approach. Furthermore, economic, ecological and social effects of a shift towards more sustainable consumption will be elicited. The three consumption fields of energy consumption in the household, mobility behavior and food consumption will be examined in an interdependent, overarching approach. These consumption fields are responsible for two-thirds of consumer spending and at the same time have the greatest environmental impact, so that they are of greatest relevance from both an economic and a sustainability perspective.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
LEADER Aller-Leine-Valley
Duration: 2014 - 2020
Project coordination: University of Kassel, Chair of Applied Microeconomics and Empirical Energy Economics
Project partners: deENet Kompetenznetzwerk dezentrale Energietechnologien
Funding institution: European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (ELER)/ LEADER programme (Links between actions for the development of the rural economy)
Summary:
The European Union funding program LEADER (French for Links between activities of the rural economy) supports the economic development of rural areas from cooperation and networking. Based on the LEADER principles of the German federal state Lower Saxony, the LEADER region Aller-Leine-Tal (Aller-Leine-Valley) is composed of eight associations of municipalities in Lower Saxony.
As a unified institution, the LEADER region Aller-Leine-Tal has gained its energy independence and is thus defined as a 100% renewable energy region+. It has generated and ratified a concept of development in 2014, which aims at the development of the rural economy with simultaneous consideration of protecting the climate and promoting renewable energy. The region emphasizes projects which reduce energy consumption and stimulate the supply and storage of energy from renewable sources, including geothermal, water, solar and wind sources. Further, the use of electric powered vehicles constitutes another focus of the region. In the past, the region has already been successful
Collaborating with the agency KoRiS, Kommunikative Stadt- und Regionalentwicklung, as the regional management, the project supports the region in achieving its defined climate protection and energy transition goals by advising the region’s steering committee, local action groups and individuals on relevant matters, providing information and linking induvial in networks.
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de
100%-Renewable-Energy-Regions
Since 2007, the 100 % Renewable Energy Regions project (100ee-Regions) has been helping communes and regions that want to supply themselves with both efficiency and sufficiency from 100 % renewable energy sources. The first project phase centred on taking stock and analysing scientifically. The objective was to give for the first time an overview of regions active in the energy field in Germany. Based on this, in the second phase of the project, the regions identified are integrated into a stable, long-term network. In particular, regions are increasingly demanding mutual exchange and learning from each other by means of transferrable examples of success. At the heart of the Project is the map documenting the regional commitment to switching the energy supply long-term over to renewable energy sources. As the financial funding by the environmental ministry ended in 2014, the project is continued as a self-supporting network.
Project website: www.100-ee.de
Contact
Prof. Dr. Heike Wetzel
Phone: +49 561 804-7750
E-Mail: heike.wetzel[at]uni-kassel[dot]de