What happens if there are power cuts and gas shortages? Bonn authorities prepare for possible blackout
Bonn · Several authorities in Bonn are currently getting ready for possible power cuts and a gas shortage in autumn and winter. The first measures have already been taken.
It’s impossible to miss the emergency generator in front of Bonn's town hall. The large container has been standing directly on Berliner Platz for several days. But it is only a replacement unit, because the actual generator has to be exchanged. A defect caused a power failure in the building a few weeks ago. No one in the city administration wants to take the risk of being caught unprepared without electricity or gas. In general, the authorities are preparing explicitly for a scenario in which there is no electricity for several days.
The police, fire brigade, public utilities, NRW Ministry of the Interior and the Federal Network Agency are making precise plans on how to act in the event of a blackout. "The fire brigade and rescue services must be prepared at all times for (power) failures in the area of critical infrastructure," is the written statement from the city hall. Against this background, "procedures as well as the equipment and facilities kept on hand for these situations will be reviewed".
Bonn-Netz, a subsidiary of Stadtwerke Bonn (SWB), is responsible for the electricity grid. A crisis team meets there regularly. "Our electricity distribution network is designed in such a way that if operating equipment in the medium-voltage level fails, we can always restore power to our customers either through automatic mechanisms or manually," says spokesperson Stefanie Zießnitz. But what happens if there is no power at all? In order to stabilise the grid in the event of a crisis, Bonn-Netz can temporarily shut down certain areas, she says. "This happens at the request of the upstream grid operator, who is responsible for grid stability".
Preparations also for gas shortage scenario
Gas shortages in autumn and winter are also among the scenarios for which preparations are being made. If there is too little gas, Bonn-Netz is responsible for making sure that the network remains stable and that the gas pressure does not drop to zero. This also means that "non-protected customers" have to reduce output or temporarily stop procuring gas.
Even though there are currently provisions in many places for a blackout lasting several days and covering a large area, the Federal Network Agency considers it "extremely unlikely". "The electrical power supply system is designed with multiple redundancies and has numerous safety mechanisms that are designed to prevent a complete collapse of the transmission grid even in the event of major disruption events," explains a spokesperson. But: "Local impairments in the power grid, which are based on a high power consumption, cannot be fundamentally ruled out by the Federal Network Agency." The Federal Government is now having a "stress test" carried out in order to analyse the situation more precisely. The Federal Network Agency has also set up a situation centre. It will become the federal load distributor and take over the responsibility for distributing the scarce gas supplies in the event of a crisis. At the emergency level, 65 specialists each for gas and electricity will be assembled to form crisis teams. The emergency centre not only has its own power generation, but also its own water supply.
State calls on municipalities to act
At the end of July, the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of the Interior took a tougher stance. The "responsible bodies for fire and disaster protection" had been advised "that further precautionary measures must be taken in the coming months to maintain operational capability". That is why, for example, the mayors and fire brigades of the Rhine-Sieg municipalities are currently meeting to prepare for power and gas outages.
The police are also getting ready: Dominik Gaida from the press office of the Bonn police confirmed that "the Bonn police also have a so-called coordination group that is dealing with this issue. The background is an assumed nationwide power blackout." In a first step, it was primarily a matter of recording the "current situation". For example, to see how the properties are equipped with emergency power. "In the meantime, more concrete plans are being worked on for the positioning of the authority in a blackout scenario." For example, the headquarters and police stations are being checked to make sure that all emergency mechanisms are in place. The core statement: "Ensuring the police's ability to function is imperative in all situations."
The experiences from the flood disaster in 2021 also play a role here. At that time, it became apparent that digital communication failed. This is to be prevented with mobile base stations. Steps that can be taken to ensure that people will still be able to make themselves known include mobile police stations and a massive increase in the number of patrols. Since 2014, many of the properties of the NRW police have been equipped with emergency power generators and fuel tanks. The requirement is to be able to maintain the backup power supply for 72 hours without having to replenish fuel.
Original text:Nicolas Ottersbach and Lisa Inhoffen
Translation: Jean Lennox
