Eon study: German households could save billions through smart meters

German households' electricity bills wouldn't have to be so high - if Germany could catch up on its backlog in installing digital electricity meters. According to calculations by the energy company Eon and the Research Center for the Energy Industry, the theoretical savings potential of flexible electricity consumption for homeowners and tenants this year alone amounts to up to 1.65 billion euros.

Analogue meters provide no incentive to save money

However, that is not reality. Most houses still have analog electricity meters installed that record the amount of electricity used, but not the time of day. This means there is no incentive to turn on the washing machine or dishwasher when electricity is cheap. The background: The price of electricity on the exchange fluctuates throughout the day. Early morning and early evening are more expensive, lunchtime and night are cheaper, as Serafin von Roon, the managing director of the research center, said.

Billions of kilowatt hours could be allocated to cheaper times of day

For the study, the energy company and the research center calculated the proportion of electricity consumption in German households that is not tied to a fixed time of day. This means that 18.3 terawatt hours could be shifted this year, which corresponds to 18.3 billion kilowatt hours. By 2031, this potential could increase to 34 terawatt hours thanks to the expansion of renewable energies. For comparison: annual electricity consumption in Bavaria is around 80 terawatt hours.

Homeowners with a solar system on the roof and battery storage in the basement find it comparatively easy to make their electricity consumption more flexible. It is more difficult for tenants, who also have no financial incentive to turn on their household appliances at favorable times of the day due to the usual tariffs with a fixed price per kilowatt hour.

Installation of digital electricity meters should be largely completed by 2030

In Germany too, exchanging for digital models is now mandatory, but this is being implemented gradually. The coalition wants to largely complete the “rollout” by 2030. “Compared to other countries, we are totally slow,” said Filip Thon, managing director of Eon Energie Germany. “Italy, Netherlands, Scandinavia, UK, they have been equipped with smart meters for years.”