Energy industry refers to the branch of industry dealing with the production, processing and distribution of energy. These include town gas, natural gas, liquid fuels, electrical energy, district heating, oil and solid energy sources such as coal, coke, peat and wood.
The electricity market is a particularly important energy market. Energy quantities that are generated from different sources and in different power plants, are traded with. The generators sell this energy in advance to companies that either consume it themselves or pass it on to their customers.
Since the liberalization of the European electricity markets around the year 2000, electricity customers have been free to choose from whom they want to purchase electricity. This does not mean, however, that you can have electricity supplied exclusively from wind power plants or from a specific region. The current flow is subject exclusively to the laws of physics and always follows the path of least resistance. As a result, the electricity can no longer be accurately allocated once it is in the grid.
Electromobility is one of five global megatrends for the energy sector.
Image: Marilyn Murphy via Pixabay
The energy sector of the future will be defined by five global megatrends:
- Technological developments such as electromobility, efficiency improvements in energy generation and storage, and distribution
- Climate change and resource availability
- demographic and social change
- the shift in global economic forces
- the increasing urbanization
Against this backdrop, energy consumption, availability and thus price structures will change.
In addition, the industry faces other challenges:
- regulatory uncertainties
- Incentives and attractiveness for investment
- the shift in markets and market structures
- Blackouts and network uncertainties
- emissions, air pollution and CO2
- Availability of energy sources and security of supply
The energy industry is currently the main source of global greenhouse gas emissions – i.e., most emissions are generated when energy sources are converted into electricity and heat.
