The Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action’s emergency gas plan comprises three escalation levels. On March 30, 2022, Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Robert Habeck declared the first level, the early warning level of the emergency gas plan. If the final escalation level, the so-called emergency level, is reached, the natural gas supply can be reduced or interrupted, and industrial and commercial customers can be shut down.
Gas suppliers constantly strive to ensure supply for all customers, but must also be prepared for potential gas shortages. To address such a crisis, a phased approach is prescribed in Section 16 of the German Energy Industry Act (EnWG). This includes crisis preparedness, which requires calculating which measures need to be taken, in what order, and with what reduction in output. This result must then be reported to the higher-level gas transmission system operator.
The current paradigm shift has led to a need for this crisis preparedness to be practiced much more frequently than just a few times a year. SoftProject and the low-code platform X4 BPMS can support this process by collecting and automatically processing the necessary time-series data from control systems, RLM meters (registered load measurement), and various other IT systems. This eliminates manual processes, reduces the workload for dispatchers in the gas control center, and increases efficiency.
The first energy suppliers have already accepted SoftProject’s offer and are using the X4 BPMS to help them calculate the potential interruptible power output in the event of gas shortages.
The X4 BPMS is a modular and scalable platform that fully digitizes business processes. It intelligently connects all company-related workflows, data, documents, and digitization phases: from graphical modeling and execution to process monitoring, perfectly coordinated automation components are available. The low-code approach—allowing any user to digitize without programming—and standardized, reusable process modules simplify and accelerate digitization projects. SoftProject’s investment rate in product development is above average at 12 percent.
Ready-to-use adapters connect existing systems to (third-party) systems and cloud solutions, unlocking new technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), Big Data, and Machine Learning. The X4 BPMS can be easily integrated and operated on cloud computing platforms such as Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, and Amazon AWS.
