Bollingstedt, a town in northern Germany: The largest battery storage facility in Germany is located here. Project manager Carina von Schleinitz shows me the secrets of the plant. 64 mega-containers, packed with battery technology, guarantee high voltage on demand. Slow coal-fired power stations could soon become obsolete as an energy reserve.

"We are doing pioneering work," smiles the project manager proudly. "Until now, many still lived in a very conventional world in which a quarter of an hour played a significant role (in stabilising the electricity grid). But, we need to react within seconds, because volatile renewables, as the name suggests, generate volatility."

This is precisely why the electricity grids are now being digitalised. However, some network operators are putting on th

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