Regulatory sandboxes for the energy transition: launch of the Darmstadt-based DELTA project

Today, the eighth ‘regulatory sandbox for the energy transition’ is being launched in Darmstadt. The DELTA project (‘Darmstadt Energy Laboratory for Technologies in Application’) brings together twelve partners from industry and research, including municipal companies and innovative startups, in a joint effort to demonstrate how the urban energy transition can be implemented in practice. A number of sub-projects are to show how a typical residential area, an industrial site, urban utilities and public transport depots can be connected by means of transmission lines and storage units for electricity, gas, heat and hydrogen. Digital methods are being used to optimise the energy flows.

Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Peter Altmaier said: “If we are to achieve our climate targets, we also have to keep an eye on the heat sector and press ahead with the decarbonisation of the heat supply system. This is why the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy is providing a total of €40.1 million to support the Darmstadt-based ‘DELTA’ innovation project in the effort to test in practice how the energy transition in the heat sector can be implemented in an urban context. In urban environments, a great variety of producers and consumers in areas such as industry, housing and mobility are in close proximity to each other, making it easier to connect energy flows. The DELTA regulatory sandbox will show in very practical terms how this can help to effectively cut carbon emissions. The results will prove applicable to a large number of cities.”

The regulatory sandboxes for the energy transition are a new initiative within the 7th Energy Research Programme of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy. Their aim is to test on an industrial scale how various energy technologies interact in the energy system. In the process, individual research findings are collated and prepared for practical implementation. Accompanying research is conducted to document the carbon emissions savings achieved. The DELTA regulatory sandbox will see investments worth more than €110 million over a period of five years, with €40.1 million being provided by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.

Further information can be found on the Economic Affairs Ministry’s energy research portal and on the project website.