Development of digital business models for holistic energy management on device, home and grid level

This paper deals with the development of digital business models for a holistic energy management, including the device, home and grid level. As a result of the transition to produce energy from renewable sources instead of fossil sources, the energy supply in Germany is facing major challenges. To meet these, far-reaching investments and innovations are needed in the energy sector. For this, a holistic decentralized energy management system for private households was developed, in which households are integrated into the measures to support the grid stability. To spread the system through incentives, digital business models are developed in this paper by applying the St. Gallen business model navigator. This gives rise to business models that view the system as an independent business or as part of the offering from energy distributors. In addition, fixed and dynamic electricity tariffs are presented, supplemented by own designs of less volatile tariffs and analyzed in relation to the energy management system. Finally, a survey was carried out, which came to the conclusion that a business model where consumers network to form a community and thus generate added value is preferred to a concept where the consumer is in direct contact with the energy distributor.