annual report 2013 our daily commitment to the energy ... · pdf fileour grid area, in...

Annual Report 2013Our daily commitment to the energy revolution

50Hertz at a glance

ValueProportion of total

for Germany

Area 109,360 km² ~ 31 %

Line length* 9,995 km ~ 29 %

Maximum load approx. 16 GW ~ 21 %

Electricity consumption based on electricity delivered to the end consumer under the EEG

approx. 98 TWh ~ 20 %

Installed capacity 44.3 GW ~ 24 %

– proportion from renewable energy sources 22.9 GW ~ 28 %

– proportion from wind energy 13.5 GW ~ 40 %

Employees 821 (according to IFRS)

Sales (gross)EUR 8.556 bn (according

to IFRS)

– proportion from the networkEUR 0.9 bn (according to

IFRS)

Substations and switching stations 66

* Line length corresponds to the circuit length

Lower Saxony

Schleswig-Holstein

Mecklenburg-WesternPomerania

Brandenburg

Berlin

Saxony

Saxony-Anhalt

Hesse

Hamburg

Thuringia

Bavaria

PSEPoland

Energinet.dk Denmark

Denmark

TenneT

TenneT

C EPSCzech Republic

Güstrow

Gera

LeipzigHalle

Erfurt

Eisenach

Rostock

Schwerin

DresdenWeimar

Potsdam

Cottbus

Chemnitz

Zwickau

Jena

Magdeburg

Frankfurt (Oder)

Neu-brandenburg

110

380+220

220

110

220

220

220150

150

220

Stat

us a

s of

Dec

embe

r 201

3

220 kV

380 kV

380 kV planned / under construction

380 / 220 kV

Other companies

Line 380 kV

Line planned / under construction 380 kV

Line 220 kV

Operating voltage in kV 110

Other companies 380 / 220 kV

HVDC / DC link 400 kV

Grid connection offshore 150 / 220 kV

Grid connection offshore 150 / 220 kV planned / under construction

System users: Our customers are regional distribution system operators as well as power plants, pumped- storage plants, wind farms and major industries connected to the transmission system.

Conventional power plant ( lignite-fired, coal-fired or gas-turbine power plant ) under construction

Pumped-storage plant

Onshore / offshore wind farm

Onshore planned / under construction

Offshore under construction

Offshore wind farms, planned

{

LegendSwitching stations (most with links to distribution system operators)

Lower Saxony

Schleswig-Holstein


Brandenburg

Berlin

Saxony

Saxony-Anhalt

Hesse

Hamburg

Thuringia

Bavaria

PSEPoland


Denmark

TenneT

TenneT

C EPSCzech Republic

Güstrow

Gera

LeipzigHalle

Erfurt

Eisenach

Rostock

Schwerin

DresdenWeimar

Potsdam

Cottbus

Chemnitz

Zwickau

Jena

Magdeburg

Frankfurt (Oder)

Neu-brandenburg

110

380+220

220

110

220

220

220150

150

220

50Hertz 50Hertz Transmission GmbH, BerlinARegV “Verordnung über die Anreizregulierung der Energieversorgungsnetze” (“Anreizregulierungsverordnung”) [Incentive Regulation Ordinance]Amprion Amprion GmbH, Dortmund (formerly RWE Transportnetz Strom GmbH, Dortmund)BBPlG “Gesetz über den Bundesbedarfsplan” (Bundesbedarfsplangesetz) [German Federal Requirements Plan Act]BNetzA “Bundesnetzagentur für Elektrizität, Gas, Telekommunikation, Post und Eisenbahn”, Bonn (Bundesnetzagentur) [Federal Network AgencyCAO CAO Central Allocation Office GmbH, Freising

CEPS CEPS a.s., Republic (Czech transmission system operator)CHP Combined Heat and PowerCORESO Coreso SA, Brussels, BelgiumCt/kWh Cents per kilowatt-hourDMBilG “Gesetz über die Eröffnungsbilanz in Deutscher Mark und die Kapitalfestsetzung” (“D-Markbilanzgesetz”) [German Act on Opening Balance Sheets in German Marks]E.ON edis E.ON edis AG, Fürstenwalde/SpreeEEG “Gesetz für den Vorrang Erneuerbarer Energien” (“Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz”) [German Renewable Energy Act]EEX European Energy Exchange AG, Leipzig (electricity exchange)EGI Elia Group InternationalEHV/HV Extra-high voltage/high voltageEIP Energy Infrastructure PackageElia Elia System Operator SA/NV, Brussels, BelgiumEMCC European Market Coupling Company GmbH, HamburgEnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG, KarlsruheEnerginet.dk Energinet.dk, Fredericia/DänemarkEnLAG “Gesetz zum Ausbau von Energieleitungen“ (“Energieleitungsausbaugesetz”) [Energy Line Extension Act]ENTSO-E European Network of Transmission System Operators for ElectricityEnWG “Gesetz über die Elektrizitäts- und Gasversorgung” (“Energiewirtschaftsgesetz”)[German Energy Industry Act]EPEX EPEX Spot SE, a subsidiary company of EEX and the French Powernext SA domiciled in Paris (electricity spot market)Eurogrid Eurogrid GmbH, BerlinEurogrid International Eurogrid International CVBA/SCRL, Brussels, BelgiumGASC German Accounting Standards CommitteeGDP Gross domestic productGV GigavoltGW GigawattGWh Gigawatt-hourHGB “Handelsgesetzbuch” [German Commercial Code]HRB “Handelsregister Abteilung B” [German Commercial Register Section B]HVDC High-Voltage Direct CurrentHz HertzIDW “Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer in Deutschland e. V.” [Institute of Public Auditors in Germany], DüsseldorfIFM Industry Funds Management Luxembourg No. 2 S.à.r.l., City of Luxembourg, LuxembourgIFM Investors IFM Investors (UK) Ltd, London, Great BritainIFRS International Financial Reporting StandardIG BCE “Industriegewerkschaft Bergbau, Chemie, Energie” German Industrial Mining, Chemical and Energy Union], Hannoverkbit/s Kilobits per secondkm/h Kilometres per hourKraftNAV “Verordnung zur Regelung des Netzanschlusses von Anlagen zur Erzeugung von elektrischer Energie” (“Kraftwerks- Netzanschlussverordnung”) [Ordinance for Regulating Grid Connections]kV KilovoltkWh Kilowatt-hourKWKG “Gesetz für die Erhaltung, die Modernisierung und den Ausbau der Kraft-Wärme-Kopplung” (“Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungsgesetz”) [German Combined Heat and Power Act]m Metrem/s Metre per secondMVA Megavolt-ampereMW MegawattMWh Megawatt-hourNABEG “Netzausbaubeschleunigungsgesetz” [Grid Expansion Acceleration Act]NEP “Netzentwicklungsplan” [grid development plan]O-NEP “Offshore-Netzentwicklungsplan” [offshore grid development plan]PSE Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne S.A., PSE S.A., Poland (Polish transmission system operator)PlVereinhG “Gesetz zur Verbesserung der Öffentlichkeitsbeteiligung und Vereinheitlichung von Planfeststellungsverfahren” [German Act for the Improvement of Public Participation and Unification of the Public Works Planning ProcedurePV plant Photovoltaic plantResKV “Verordnung zur Regelung des Verfahrens der Beschaffung einer Netzreserve sowie zur Regelung des Umgangs mit geplanten Stilllegungen vonEnergieerzeugungsanlagen zur Gewährleistung der Sicherheit und Zuverlässigkeit des Elektrizitätsversorgungssystems” (“Reservekraftwerksverordnung”) [German Regulation on Reserve Power Plants]RückAbzinsV “Verordnung über die Ermittlung und Bekanntgabe der Sätze zur Abzinsung von Rückstellungen” (“Rückstellungsabzinsungsverordnung”) [German Ordinance on the Discounting of Provisions]StromNEV “Stromnetzentgeltverordnung” [Ordinance on Electricity Network-User Charges]TCC Transmission Control Centre, NeuenhagenTenneT TenneT TSO GmbH, BayreuthTransnetBW TransnetBW GmbHTSC TSO Security CooperationTSO Transmission System OperatorTW TerawattTWh Terawatt-hour

List of abbreviations

Our daily commitment to the energy revolution

Portrait of a company with a future 5

Internal and external expertise: the company organs 7

Interview with Boris Schucht, Chair and Chief Executive Officer 9

Report from the Supervisory Board 13

Commitment to transparency and social awareness 17

Reliable operation for fair competition 25

Infrastructure expansion with ensured environmental protection 33

High level of expertise in matters pertaining to the environment and the future 45

Good deeds across the entire grid area 53

The most important resource: qualified and committed personnel 59

5 • AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 Our daily cOmmitment tO the energy revOlutiOn

Portrait of a company with a future

50Hertz – powering a world in progressas a transmission system operator (tSO) in central europe, we are committed to the secure integration of renewable energy sources, the development of the european electricity market and the maintenance of a high standard for security of supply.

We handle the operation, maintenance, planning and expansion of the transmission system at the 150-, 220- and 380- kilovolt (kv) levels in northern and eastern germany. Our grid extends over an area of 109,360 square kilometres. it has a circuit length of around 10,000 kilometres, which corre-sponds roughly to the distance from Berlin to rio de Janeiro.

as the tSO responsible for the system, we give priority to electricity from renewable energy sources when supplying our grid area, in accordance with the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable energy act.] We already secure the integration of around 40 per cent of all installed wind-power capacity in germany. We are pioneers in this field in europe. Our grid forms the backbone for the secure supply of electricity to more than 18 million people – 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.

Our name reflects our program: 50 hertz (50 hz) is the target frequency for the electricity grid and thus forms the basis for a reliable electricity supply. the core task of each tSO is to permanently ensure the stability of this grid frequency. We work together with our domestic and foreign partners to maintain 50 hz, the pulse of europe’s electricity supply. We also promote the development of the electricity market, integrate all renewable energy sources securely into the grid and expand our grid as needed to accomplish this.

We operate transparently and without discrimination, fully within the meaning of the grid independence and neutral-ity required by the european union. Since 2012, 50hertz has been the only german tSO to be certified as a fully unbundled grid operator in terms of ownership law by the Federal network agency (Bnetza). We are an independent transmission-system operator as well as part of the interna-tional elia group. Our shareholders include Belgian tSO elia System Operator Sa/nv (elia), which holds 60 per cent of

the shares, and infrastructure fund industry Funds manage-ment luxembourg no. 2 S.à.r.l. (iFm), which holds 40 per cent.

as a european tSO, we belong to the association known as the european network of transmission System Operators for electricity (entSO-e).

50hertz is domiciled in Berlin. the heart of our business is the transmission control centre (tcc) in neuenhagen bei Berlin. this is where our employees monitor the flow of energy through the grid and implement measures to ensure the stability of the energy system, so as to guarantee a bal-ance between generation and consumption at all times. We maintain seven regional centres to ensure optimal mainte-nance of our transmission system, substations and switch-ing stations in the regions of the federal states of Berlin, Brandenburg, hamburg, mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, Saxony-anhalt and thuringia.

Our customers and partners include the regional energy supply companies’ distribution system operators (dSO) (that are located in our grid area and that have their systems directly connected to the transmission system. this includes the operators of power plants, pumped-storage plants, wind farms, major industrial consumers, transit- and accounting-circuit customers as well as business partners that are connected to the transmission system in accordance with the eeg and the KWKg [“Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungsgesetz”: german combined heat and Power act].

Our vision: we are pioneers in the development of multilater-al, sustainable and reliable electrical systems for the energy revolution, and in the process we connect land and sea and create new potentials.

POrtrait OF a cOmPany With a Future AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 6


Internal and external expertise: the company organs

Boris Schucht chair and chief executive Officer (ceO)

Dr Dirk Biermannchief Officer for markets and System Operations (cmO)

Dr Frank Golletzchief technical Officer (ctO)

udo Giegerich chief Financial Officer (cFO)

Members of the Board of Directors

Hans-Jörg Dorny chief Personnel Officer (cPO)

internal and eXternal eXPertiSe: the cOmPany OrganS AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 8

50hertz transmission gmbh is a wholly owned subsidiary of eurogrid gmbh (eurogrid), domiciled in Berlin. listed Belgian electricity transmission system operator (tSO) elia System Operator Sa/nv (elia) and infrastructure fund industry Funds management luxembourg no. 2 S.à.r.l. (iFm) have indirect holdings in eurogrid via eurogrid international cvBa/Scrl (eurogrid international), domiciled in Brussels, Belgium.

Supervisory Board50hertz is controlled and monitored by eurogrid and a codetermined Supervisory Board. the Supervisory Board of 50hertz consists of six members and is composed as follows:

Members of the Supervisory BoardDaniel Dobbeni chair chair of the Board of eurogrid international, Braine-l’alleud (Belgium)

peter Hausmann* deputy chair managing member of the executive Board of the german industrial mining, chemical and energy union (ig Bce), hanover (germany)

Markus Berger director of asset management, elia System Operator Sa., antwerp (Belgium)

Werner Kerschl investment director at iiFm investors (uK) ltd, london (great Britain)

Andrea ludwig* electrical engineer, Berlin (germany)

Dr lutz pscherer* electrical engineer, Berlin (germany)

* employee representative

Board of Directorsthe company 50hertz is represented externally by two managing directors jointly or by one managing director together with an authorized officer. the managing directors are appointed and recalled by the 50hertz Supervisory Board.

Members of the Board of Directorsthe members of the Board of directors are:

Boris SchuchtBerlin, chair and chief executive Officer

Dr Dirk Biermann Berlin, chief Officer for markets and System Operations

Hans-Jörg Dorny neuenhagen bei Berlin, chief Personnel Officer (until 11 november 2013 )

udo Giegerich Berlin, chief Financial Officer

Dr Frank Golletzdresden, chief technical Officer


Interview with Boris Schucht, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Board of Directors

In 2013, 50Hertz again made important contributions to the success of the energy revolution. Which achieve- ments and successes are especially memorable for you?

Boris Schucht: i am especially proud of the fact that we managed to implement and successfully finance an invest-ment of over 400 million euros last year. and everything was perfectly coordinated with ongoing system operations in order to minimize grid element downtimes and to guarantee a high security of supply. that is an extraordinary achieve-ment, a record in the history of 50hertz. it shows that we are a capable company that can master the requirements for modifying the electrical system. even the construction work on the second segment of the southwestern intercon-nector is running at full speed; the public-works planning procedure has been opened for the third segment. We’re making good progress on the most urgent grid-expansion project in germany.

But that isn’t the only place we’re making progress. With the Bärwalde–Schmölln link, we installed a new line on an exist-ing route during ongoing partial operation for the first time. Our new altentreptow-north substation, installed in record time, allowed mecklenburg-Western Pomerania’s highest-capacity wind farm – with hydrogen production and storage – to be connected to the grid in 2013. these are the types of accomplishments that allow us to create new potentials and to make our contribution to society. improve-ments to our purchasing processes and payment process-ing that were implemented in 2013 are helping us.

We also started the planning process in 2013 for the South–east direct-current Passage, our first onshore direct-current line, which we would like to install jointly with amprion. With this project in particular, our professional, reliable and prudent action is crucial to its realization. this important north–south link is of vital importance for trans-mitting wind energy from the north as well as for securely supplying Bavaria. it is also the first project of ours that we are developing according to the new process for cross-border lines. the public discussion on this project shows how important transparency, open dialogue and promotion

are for gaining understanding and acceptance of the grid expansion.

We involve the public authorities and the public in our plan-ning much sooner than before. that is the right path that leads to more understanding, better involvement from third parties and – for us – to a more predictable, better imple-mentation of the project. even here it is necessary to aim at rapid and targeted progress in order to show society: “We’re making progress, we’re working with you and we’re happy to take suggestions”. reliable plans, trusting cooperation and transparent action are essential for our corporate development.

the new German Federal Government wants tighter control of the energy revolution and wants to make significant readjustments to a few points. What does that mean for 50Hertz?

Boris Schucht: at a time when subjects like the costs of the energy revolution, the pace of grid expansion or the secure supply of germany were really coming into focus as a result of the german Federal Parliamentary elections, we were able to state our positions clearly. the coalition agree-ment of the new german Federal government contains many important points. We will continue to make ourselves available for discussions, so that these rudimentary begin-nings now will lead to reliable framework conditions and well-formulated agreements. the fact is, as a transmission system operator (tSO), we are also greatly affected by the transition in the energy industry. We must ease this transition and take care to prevent any painful breaks.

We want to remain transparent and use all available informa-tion to make our case to society in order to ensure that an efficient and secure supply of energy is possible in the future. We are doing that not only in the process of the grid devel-opment plan (neP), an essential tool for designing the energy system of the future; we at 50hertz also want to build the grid that is actually needed and nothing more. Of course we have also noticed that market activity is becoming an ever more important framework for our activity and especially for

our core responsibility – maintaining security of supply. For-tunately, the share of renewables continues to rise steadily, which of course also means that we will soon have to over-haul our market processes from the ground up. We can see that the dynamic in recent years has made the system more temperamental, resulting in sometimes large imbalances in the electrical system. it is not sustainable when large parts of the conventional generation system, which will continue to be the urgently needed secure capacity in the system, are no longer economically profitable. this can quickly lead to a capacity problem, which absolutely must be prevented. here too, we look forward to the upcoming discussions on market developments in germany and europe.

What other challenges do you see for 50Hertz, and how will you meet them?

Boris Schucht: Our offshore activities in particular are al-ways posing new challenges to us, to our service providers and to our project partners. We have already learned a lot. as we complete our work on enBW Baltic 1 and continue laying cable for enBW Baltic 2, we notice that our “maritime grid area” is becoming more and more reliable and that our ability to find smart solutions for unplanned developments – that is to say, our agility – has become a core characteristic for our progress. the new projects via the lubmin connec-tion point are now in progress, which will allow us to create additional, cost-efficient connection systems in order to achieve the german offshore objectives.

the links to our european neighbours, both offshore and on-shore, must be tested thoroughly and strengthened further. they can be very useful in terms of the national economy. We have come to an agreement with our Polish colleagues from Polskie Sieci elektroenergetyczne to install phase-shift-ing transformers at the border to Poland in order to enable better control of load flows. after lengthy negotiations, we were also fortunately able to come to an agreement in prin-ciple with our czech neighbours cePS just before the end of the year.

intervieW With BOriS Schucht, chair and ceO AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 10


it is not always easy to bring our extensive onshore and offshore investment program together with the daily require-ments of grid operations and secure system operations. Our internal project, “netzbetrieb morgen und übermorgen”

[grid operations tomorrow and the next day], which will be rolled out in 2013 following the design phase, is meant to equip our regional centres in particular for this enormous double task. a new regional centre in hamburg, suitable

Left to right: Dr Frank Golletz, Dr Katharina Herrmann (Labour Director), Boris Schucht, Dr Dirk Biermann, Udo Giegerich

organizational structures, processes and responsibilities will create the right framework conditions for their work. We have also refined the processes, responsibilities and structures in the transmission control centre (tcc) in neuenhagen bei Berlin in order to better meet the grow-ing requirements of system operations. and by the way, new all-time highs were dealt with in strained grid situa-tions, whether they were deviations of several thousands of megawatts from the prediction or new wind-power genera-tion peaks of over 11,000 megawatts. improved processes, resulting from the introduction of an innovative and highly automated procurement process, for example, have helped us to develop our investment plans efficiently on a commer-cial basis as well.

How is 50Hertz positioning itself internally and in terms of its cooperative partnerships so as to remain on track for success?

Boris Schucht: ten trainees and 84 other colleagues joined 50hertz this year. they will gain familiarity with everyday grid situations from and with us in the dynamic environment of the energy revolution. the team that will enable us to con-quer the challenges is essentially on board. now, every one of us bears the responsibility for setting the right course and actively shaping our future. We made some crucial decisions in 2013 to ensure that we are constantly getting better at this and are taking up the “common cause” with our Belgian colleagues more and more.

i am very proud of the great reputation that 50hertz has earned as an employer in the labour market and of the de-gree of enthusiasm and motivation with which the workforce has made all of the year’s successes possible. For that rea-son, the entire 50hertz team deserves my sincerest thanks!the employee share program at 50hertz and the develop-ment program at the elia group level have both started. as of 1 January 2014, there is a new group structure which will serve to further strengthen cooperation within the corporate group. as well as information-technology topics, cross-company innovation and strategy topics, group communi-cation and european activities will also be organized in this

new way in the future. a new company is being founded in spring 2014: with elia group international (egi), we will be able to unlock international investment opportunities in the future with even more vigour than in the past and establish the elia group as a global partner in the energy sector.

So, there are big changes coming for 50Hertz – what does that mean for the “50Hertz identity”?

Boris Schucht: it is precisely in times of great stress that changes require even more of our energy. When the new ways become the norm, they make it easier for us to ac-complish our tasks. We are absolutely convinced of that. however, we do not want to implement these changes in just any way and achieve our objectives arbitrarily. We want to work with each other and with others in a very specific way: value oriented, in collegial cooperation and in open dialogue. that is our maxim; that is the “50hertz identity”, which is not only evident when we welcome new col-leagues, but which will also more strongly characterize our daily cooperation and communication with each other and with external partners. We will achieve this, and it is a matter of concern for all 50hertz-ers. if in January 2015 we have in our hands the final documents and approvals needed for the new “50hertz grid headquarters”, then in 2016 our new company headquarters will express this self image in a simi-larly inviting, open and transparent working environment.

intervieW With BOriS Schucht, chair and ceO AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 12


Dear Reader, in the preceding business year, the codetermined Supervi-sory Board of 50hertz transmission gmbh performed its duties with great diligence, as required by the articles of association and by law, and regularly supervised the Board of directors in the control of the company.

the members of the Supervisory Board paid special atten-tion to strategic corporate-development topics and plans as well as to the essential investment projects in line with the grid expansion required for the realization of the energy revolution, wherein they supervised the Board of directors in an advisory capacity. this involved the Supervisory Board informing the Board of directors in detail, in written reports and oral presentations, about the business situation, the statutory and regulatory framework conditions and their effects on corporate development, dealing with operative corporate planning including the financial, investment and personnel planning of the company and its subsidiary com-panies and discussing possibilities for the strategic align-ment of the company.

in particular, the members of the Supervisory Board used their regular sessions for an intensive exchange of ideas and for detailed discussions with each other as well as with the Board of directors. the employee representatives on the Supervisory Board prepared all sessions within the context of special advance meetings with the directors.

all sessions and discussions took place in an open, con-structive and trusting atmosphere. even between sessions, the chair of the Supervisory Board and the deputy chair of the Supervisory Board were in regular contact with the chair of the Board of directors, who always informed them ap-propriately of events that were essential for the assessment of the position and development and for the control of the company. thus, the Supervisory Board was involved at an early stage in all important business decisions and – insofar as required by law and by the articles of association – gave its consent after detailed deliberations.

the Supervisory Board, as a general rule, passed resolu-tions in its sessions. individual exceptions to this general

Report from the Supervisory Board

rule included resolutions that were required in the written procedure in July 2013 regarding seasonal financing. the Supervisory Board reviewed all matters underlying the resolution with regard to legality, correctness and economic viability.

conflicts of interest were not indicated by the Supervisory Board, nor did any circumstances become known that would have suggested the existence of a conflict of interest.

Sessions of the Supervisory Boardthe Supervisory Board met on 8 march, 20 September and 6 december 2013 for regular sessions. the key points of the deliberations and resolution were the conclusion of the cooperation agreement with danish transmission system operator (tSO) energinet.dk for the realization of the Kriegers Flak combined grid Solution offshore grid link, the installation of phase-shifting transformers for the preven-tion of unwanted load flows across the czech grid and across the Polish grid, the strategic and operative company procedure for the installation of grid connections for offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea, the further development of the corporate financing structure and the conclusion of corre-sponding financing agreements by and with eurogrid gmbh (eurogrid) including the provision of required securities, the reorientation of the corporate telecommunications strategy for the long-term security of important infrastructure and the specific expertise for its strategic planning and operation, the acquisition of an interest in the leipzig-based european energy exchange ag (eeX) and the adoption of the budget for the planned new construction of the company headquar-ters at the heidestrasse site in Berlin.

moreover, the Supervisory Board dealt continuously and in detail with the development of the legal and regulatory framework, especially with the national and international efficiency comparison of the german tSOs and the review of the costs subject to regulatory recognition, and super-vised the development of the national grid development plan (neP) including its anchoring in the BBPlg [“Bundesbedar-fsplangesetz”: german Federal requirements Plan act]. Finally, the Supervisory Board discussed the 2014 Busi-ness Plan in detail and recommended it to the shareholders

for confirmation. Financial Statements for 2013 Based on the auditor’s report of the chosen auditor, ernst & young Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft mbh (ernst & young), and on the oral presentation of the Board of directors, the Su-pervisory Board, in its session on 7 march 2014, discussed the Financial Statements for the 2013 business year and the company management report.

ernst & young concluded the audit with an unqualified audi-tor’s opinion; the itemized audit results were explained in the Supervisory Board session on 7 march 2014 and discussed in detail with the members of the Supervisory Board. Based on the written and oral reports of the auditor and as a result of intensive internal activity, the Supervisory Board came to the conclusion that the audit performed by ernst & young was carried out properly and conforms to all statutory requirements. it also determined that there are no objections to the Financial Statements or to the company management report or to the statements made by the Board of directors in connection with this. in the same session, the Supervisory Board resolved to entrust ernst & young again with the audit of the Financial Statements (2014).

Director-related and personnel mattersthe Supervisory Board resolved the extension of the ap-pointment of mr udo giegerich as chief Financial Officer un-til 31 december 2016 and of dr Frank golletz as chief tech-nical Officer until 31 march 2019, as well as the adjustment of their respective employment contracts. it also decided to adjust the employment contract of mr Boris Schucht, chair and chief executive Officer, to comply with the fundamental principles applied to all directors’ service contracts. in con-nection with the retirement of mr hans-Jörg dorny as chief Personnel Officer on 30 September 2013, the Supervisory Board appointed dr Katharina herrmann as the new labour director and decided on all necessary adjustments to the by-laws of the Board of directors in connection with this.

Furthermore, it supervised the fulfilment of the personal and corporate objectives of the directors and settled the agree-ments on objectives that were concluded for the year 2013 with mr Boris Schucht, mr udo giegerich, dr Frank golletz, dr dirk Biermann and mr hans-Jörg dorny. the members

rePOrt FrOm the SuPerviSOry BOard AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 14


of the Supervisory Board provided a comprehensive picture regarding organizational and personnel development in the company. they discussed in detail the principles governing the conferral of procuration and conferred it accordingly to company executives. Furthermore, they also deliberated and resolved to adjust the principles of compensation for execu-tives and to align them to new standards. all matters affecting the directors and central personnel top-ics were first deliberated in the executive committee of the Supervisory Board and then resolved by the entire Supervi-sory Board.

Final remarksthere were no personnel changes in the composition of the Supervisory Board during the report period. no legal transactions were concluded other than those mentioned above between the company and its associated companies and directors or their dependants. no contracts were con-cluded between the company and members of the Super-visory Board and no new credit was granted to members of the Supervisory Board. the Supervisory Board was also unaware of any other legal transactions on which it was appointed to act or which would have required its approval. the Supervisory Board extends its sincerest thanks and ac-colades to the Board of directors, to the Shop committees and to all employees for their committed and successful work in 2013.

Berlin, march 2014

Daniel Dobbeni (chair of the Supervisory Board at 50hertz transmission gmbh)

rePOrt FrOm the SuPerviSOry BOard AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 16

8.12 a.m.location: office at the company headquartersCoordinates: 52° 29' n, 13° 27' eAmbient temperature: 20 °CHumidity: 50 %Data: 16.000 kbit/sIlluminance: 500 lux

transparency officer livia Fuchs has been coordinating and taking responsibility for the data publications of 50Hertz since 2011. Currency and comprehensibilty, precision and above all transparency are the criteria for which she has felt particularlyresponsible since 2011.


the german energy policy has fundamentally changed in re-cent years. renewable energy sources account for an ever-increasing share of the energy supply. By 2020, 35 per cent of germany’s electricity is supposed to be generated from renewable energy sources. in 2050, the share of renewables is supposed to amount to 60 per cent of all energy con-sumption and 80 per cent of electricity consumption. the immediate consequence of the growth of renewable energy sources: electricity generation and electricity consump-tion are growing steadily farther apart both in space and in time. an adequate transmission capacity is thus imperative for the new energy sources. this can be provided in three ways: optimization of the existing grids, reinforcement of grids and routes, grid expansion. as transmission system operator (tSO) for northern and eastern germany, 50hertz is doing its part for the success of the energy revolution. 50hertz’s grid today already secures the integration of over 40 per cent of all installed wind-power capacity in germany. in 2013, more than 35 per cent of the consumption in 50hertz’s region was already accounted for by electricity from renewable energy sources. and 50hertz, by statutory mandate, continues to invest in the successful reconstruc-tion of the energy landscape. Of course, this can only suc-ceed if all the key players are pulling in the same direction: industry, science, policy makers, citizens and consumers.

that is why 50hertz is committed to maximum transpar-ency, early provision of information and open dialogue with all stakeholders. the objective is to inform the interested public early, continuously, comprehensively and factually with regard to what is actually happening and how they can participate. the participation of all relevant corporate groups is also naturally in focus for all line-construction plans.

online information on grid operations50hertz was the first german tSO to publish its load-flow data on the internet and has been doing so since april 2012. in this way, 50hertz satisfies the public’s need to

better understand the relationship between grid load and the need for grid expansion. People who are interested can view the current situation in the grid by means of an animated map, view a time period as a video or download the data as a file.

Constructive dialogue with citizensline-construction projects are protracted and complex. Because of complicated review and approval processes in particular, the planning and realization periods are currently between five and ten years. 50hertz is thus always striv-ing to explain the current status of the process as well as the opportunities for participation that exist at this point in time. this is true for the activities of 50hertz with regard to the operation of the electrical system and also with regard to the development of the necessary grid infrastructure. all the essentials relating to this can be found on the website at www.50hertz.com. People who are interested can find an-swers to questions about local activities, organized by pro-ject, under “grid extension”. if desired, they can also sign up for a periodical project newsletter. 50hertz also produces a series of brochures and leaflets geared mostly towards a general audience. they explain important underlying techni-cal and planning concepts. 50hertz addresses the public and especially the affected cities and communities as well as the citizens as early as possible and actively invites them to an informal dialogue. By means of appropriate communica-tion measures, 50hertz guides and supports the interested citizens and institutions through the process. in coordination with federal and state approval authorities, 50hertz provides access to documents and maps from the approval process on its project web pages. 50hertz answers open questions as quickly and candidly as possible. citizens can contact 50hertz directly via a community helpline. 50hertz takes part in many forums to improve the tools for this dialogue, to share its own experiences and to learn from the best. ac-cordingly, 50hertz is always working to improve itself – with the objective of maximizing the effectiveness of the required

Commitment to transparency and social awareness

Milestones 2013 Maximum grid input

On 4 January 2013, 50hertz records the maximum grid input into the

transmission system: 15,961 megawatts (mW) (minute instantaneous value).

4 January 2013

http://www.50hertz.com

cOmmitment tO tranSParency and SOcial aWareneSS AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 20

50Hertz employees as “energy Ambassadors” of the Government

engineers Katja horenk and Sven riedel of 50hertz are “energy ambassadors”

for the german Federal government. the campaign of the same name shows

people who are working successfully for the energy revolution every day.

21 January 2013


social dialogue on the modification of the extra-high-voltage grid. the essential elements for this are the legally required public-participation process, consistently accompanied by a series of informational forums, dialogue forums and partici-pation forums. thus, for line-construction projects 50hertz uses info markets, “World cafés”, citizen workshops or

mobile citizen offices, among other things, to present itself directly at locations in the line-construction regions. in ad-dition, the internet portal for the ] (neP) of the four german tSOs (www.netzentwicklungsplan.de) provides information on how the grid expansion will be coordinated in germany as well as consultation forums for the development of an-nual nePs.

With the new naBeg [“netzausbaubeschleunigungsgesetz”: grid expansion acceleration act], cross-border approval processes in 2013 will for the first time also be started under the responsibility of the Federal network agency (Bnetza). these also place new requirements on transpar-ency. a corresponding packet of measures is intended to reduce the duration of the planning and approval process by means of early involvement of the interested public and to result in greater acceptance of the line construction among the people. measures of this type were first used in the first naBeg project, the South–east direct-current Passage. this is one of the most important electric routes planned jointly by 50hertz and tSO amprion gmbh (amprion) between northern and southern germany for the imple-mentation of the energy revolution. thus, 50hertz informed the public in thuringia and Saxony-anhalt, for example, in Weimar on 26 november 2013 and in landsberg (halle) on 28 november 2013 about the planned line construction. the events formed the kick-off to a comprehensive dialogue process that accompanied the planning and expansion of the South–east direct-current Passage. 50hertz provides the documentation on its project web pages for download by any interested person.

Mobile info on renewable energy sources: the eeG app from 50Hertz50hertz presented the first version of the “eeg-mobil” app in 2012. it provides mobile access to important information and current facts and figures having to do with the subject of renewable energy sources. 50hertz optimized the app in

Did you know:the increasing demand for the transmis-

sion of electricity from renewable energy

sources is making it necessary to rein-

force and expand the electricity grid. the

13th Amendment to the German Atomic

energy Act defines Germany’s policy as

the complete phase-out of nuclear power

by 2022. It has anchored the energy re-

volution principles in law in conjunction

with the amendment to the enWG [“ener-

giewirtschaftsgesetz”: German energy

Industry Act] and the nABeG [“netzaus-

baubeschleunigungsgesetz”: Grid expan-

sion Acceleration Act.

Informational event on the planned 380-kilovolt (kV) overhead line between

eisenhüttenstadt in Germany and plewiska in poland

50hertz plans to reinforce the european electricity-transmission system between germany and Poland.

an informational event was held to inform citizens and officials about the necessary construction of an

overhead line between the substations in eisenhüttenstadt, germany, and Plewiska, Poland.

24 January 2013

http://www.netzentwicklungsplan.de

2013 and expanded it to include additional real-time data from the 50hertz grid area. the app can display import and export data as well as input data and predictions of wind-power and solar-electricity input, maximum input values and reductions pursuant to Sec. 13.2 and Sec. 13.2 enWg [“en-ergiewirtschaftsgesetz”: german energy industry act]. the app is available for the following operating systems: iOS, android and Windows Phone. (www.50hertz.com/eeg-app).

A close connection to policy50hertz also contributes to a better understanding among policy makers with regard to real-world operations and the development of the electrical system. For this reason, 50hertz accompanies legislative processes – by means of its early inclusion of suggestions, for instance, and the publication of data and information. moreover, 50hertz addresses public authorities and politicians on a regular basis with regard to important points concerning regulatory frameworks, approval processes and security of supply, the development of renewable energy sources and market developments, and it organizes the relevant workshops at regional, national and european levels. the Public relations department also maintains a regular dialogue with custom-ers, partners and associations.

For example, 50hertz is a founding member of the renewa-bles grid initiative (rgi). 50hertz works together with other tSOs and non-governmental organizations as part of this dialogue platform, to date the only one in europe, to develop approaches for better mediation of the need for grid ex-pansion in europe. the objective of everyone involved is to bring about greater understanding and acceptance for the ecologically compatible and socially acceptable expansion of electricity-transmission systems, no matter how important this is for the integration of renewable energy sources.On 1 June 2013, german Federal environment minister Pe-ter altmaier inaugurated the “renewables club” with environ-ment ministers from 9 leading states from europe, asia and

africa. the initiators want to use the club to promote the development of renewable energy sources worldwide and to support the work of the international renewable energy agency (irena). Boris Schucht, chair and chief executive Officer of 50hertz, was invited to this exclusive club as an expert. there, he reported on practical experiences and the central role of grid operators, as well as on the effects of the energy revolution on system operations, market activity, costs and the need for expansion. delegations from china and india were especially grateful to Boris Schucht for the opportunity to visit the 50hertz transmission control centre (tcc). there, they were able to see for themselves the challenges that come along with the integration of renewables.

50hertz is also in demand at the national level, such as when there is a need for a social consensus regarding ob-jectives and formats for a dialogue with citizens concerning infrastructure projects. relevant milestones in this regard are the collaboration with Plan n 2.0 of the netzintegration Fo-rum [grid integration forum] presented by german environ-mental group deutsche umwelthilfe, the agreement with the State of Brandenburg regarding information and participa-tion, and participation in workshops held by germanwatch e. v. concerning the implementation of naBeg. even more important is the dialogue with the association of german engineers (vdi) regarding the new vdi 7000 guideline on early public participation in industrial and infrastructure projects.

cities, communities and counties are important partners for 50hertz with respect to the organization of the dialogue with citizens. 50hertz and the other tSOs are thus consolidating their cooperation with intermunicipal associations. an initial meeting for that purpose took place in Berlin in July 2013. there, it was agreed that intermunicipal associations and tSOs would adopt a joint position paper on grid expansion. the municipalities and the grids also need to attain a more


50Hertz and pSe use virtual phase shifters for the first time to improve control of cross-border electricity flows

in January 2013, 50hertz and Polskie Sieci elektroenergetyczne S.a. (PSe) successfully carried out the first short-term use of virtual phase shifters, agreed in december 2013,

to ensure system security. 3 march 2013 – Start of public consultation on the grid development plan (neP) and offshore grid development plan (O-neP) for 2013. the four

german transmission system operators (tSO) publish the respective first drafts of the onshore neP and the O-neP 2013 on 2 march 2013. the public consultation begins.

27 January 2013

http://www.50hertz.com/eeg-app


definitive understanding of their roles. there was a special need for discussion with the county association, the associa-tion of cities and the association of cities and municipalities with regard to compensation payments to the municipalities.

What makes us especially proud: 50hertz employees acted as “energy ambassadors” for the german Federal government as part of the campaign of the same name. the campaign highlights people who are already success-fully working for the energy revolution day by day.

Citizen participation with dividends50hertz sees the financial participation of citizens in grid

expansion as a potential instrument for promoting grid expansion and for garnering more acceptance. On 5 July 2013, the managing directors of the four tSOs together with ger-man Federal minister for economic affairs Philipp rösler and german Federal environment minister Peter altmaier pre-sented a joint key issues paper “on the financial participation of citizens in grid expansion at the transmission-system level”. a pilot project by tennet tSO gmbh (tennet) on the West coast line has shown, however, that it can be difficult to organize in compliance with regulations and financial market rules and that there also appears to be little demand from citizens. 50hertz thus has no plans to introduce a participation product of its own in the short term.

tower foundation work to stabilise 50Hertz extra-high-voltage line

50hertz starts maintenance and repair work on extra-high-voltage towers between the communities of Bruchmühle

and eggersdorf. this tower-stability maintenance measure is part of a comprehensive project for the maintenance

of tower foundations along the 380-kilovolt (kv) extra-high-voltage line from Preilack to neuenhagen.

19 march 2013

A wide array of specialist events 50herz has also established itself as a constant in the industry with a wide variety of different events. close to 300 participants came to Berlin for the eeg conference on 24 October 2013. they discussed current trends and challenges within the context of the political debate on the energy revolution and a reform of the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable energy act]. With this annual conference, 50hertz is contributing to the indus-try’s commitment to current developments and promoting the social discourse surrounding the eeg. the conference focused on topics pertaining to market integration of renew-able energy sources, the levy for eeg implementation, input management and the german System Stability Ordinance. another important topic was the implementation of Section 19 Paragraph 2 of the german Ordinance on electricity network user charges, which deals with exemptions from grid-user charges. among the participants welcomed to this conference by 50hertz were representatives of the transmission- and distribution system operators (dSO) as well as the Bnetza, electricity traders, electricity sellers and stock market experts, plant operators, it experts, lawyers and auditors.

50hertz’s 6th System Security conference was held on 27 and 28 august. more than 140 representatives from the fields of electricity generation, transmission and distribution, as well as representatives of universities, associations, public authorities and consulting firms gathered there to discuss the present and future security of the electricity supply. the two-day conference covered topics such as sheddable loads, manual load shedding and critical grid situations. Participants also held real-time discussions of laws, ordi- nances and above all cooperation between dSOs and tSOs.

50hertz regularly receives domestic and foreign delegations at its technical facilities: for example, german Federal minis-

ter of economic affairs Philipp rösler visited the 380-kilovolt (kv) “city diagonal” in the Friedrichshain neighbourhood of Berlin on 28 august. Boris Schucht and dr Frank golletz informed the minister about the backbone of the national capital’s electricity supply.


Did you know:the German electricity grid consists of four

voltage levels. the highest-level transre-

gional transmission systems, known as

electricity highways, form the backbone

of the energy infrastructure. they transmit

large amounts of electricity at the highest

voltage level of 220 or 380 kilovolts (kV)

with low losses over long distances to re-

gional distribution grids. Furthermore, the

transmission systems connect the Ger-

man electricity grid to those of neighbour-

ing countries via interconnectors, thus

enabling cross-border energy exchange

in europe.

First submarine cable segment is laid for the second German offshore wind farm

the first length of submarine cable is pulled into the offshore platform of the enBW Baltic 1 wind farm for the

connection to the extra-high-voltage grid in Bentwisch near rostock being set up by 50hertz. in the future,

electricity from the enBW Baltic 2 offshore wind farm will also be brought onshore via this platform.

20 april 2013

10.25 a.m.location: Front officeCoordinates: 52° 29' n, 13° 27' eAmbient temperature: 21 °CGrid frequency: 50 HzWind speed: 13 km/hStock market growth: 30 %

Catherine Schwarz has been the portfolio manager for 50Hertz since February 2010. Working in shifts, she and her colleagues ensure the acquisition and marketing of electricity on the stock exchange 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Maxi- mum concentration, flexibility and a good ability to react areindispensable for this job.


as the transmission system operator (tSO) responsible for the system, 50hertz is mandated to “operate, maintain and, as needed, optimise, reinforce and expand a secure, reliable and efficient energy-supply grid without discrimination.” this is how the concept is anchored in Section 11 of the enWg [“energiewirtschaftsgesetz”: german energy industry act]. in accordance with the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable energy act], 50hertz gives priority to all electricity from renewable energy sources when supplying its grid area. 50hertz faces great challenges in successfully im-plementing the energy revolution: even during dynamic mar-ket developments and increasing eeg electricity quantities, 50hertz must ensure the secure and requirement-compliant operation of the electrical system around the clock. the top priority is to maintain a permanently stable grid frequency of 50 hz. renewable energy sources are depend-ent on the wind and sun and thus provide a very unsteady input. that dramatically increases the complexity of main-taining the balance between generation and consumption in the 50hertz grid area. this balance is controlled jointly by 50hertz and the other german tSOs within the framework of grid-control cooperation. to that end, the german tSOs secure the necessary reserves which serve to balance out differences between generation and consumption at all times. in addition to ensuring the frequency, 50hertz also ensures requirement-compliant control of the voltage as an-other parameter for the security and reliability of the electric-ity supply system. 50hertz’s intensive preparations for winter 2012/2013 have borne fruit. at the beginning of the year, 50hertz was able to ensure the secure operation of its grid without drastic measures. the 380-kilovolts (kv) north line from Schwerin to hamburg, which has been available since december 2012, has had a very positive effect on voltage stability in the greater-hamburg area and on the outward transmission of wind energy. under high wind-energy input conditions, this also served to relieve the other network lines to the west and south. another important contribu-

tion to the secure operation of the system came when the innovative high-temperature cable line from remptendorf (thuringia) to redwitz (Bavaria) proved itself by achieving an increase in transmission capability.

the effects of hurricane Xaver were a special challenge for the system management of 50hertz on 5 and 6 decem-

Reliable operation for fair competition

Did you know:the expansion of renewable energy sour-

ces constantly brings new challenges. nils

Dietrich has to meet these challenges

on a daily basis. As a secondary engi-

neer, he supervises and coordinates cur-

rent projects at 50Hertz and is respon-

sible for the implementation and main-

tenance of systems as well as for complex

functional tests. no two days are alike:

equipped with a laptop, testing and mea-

suring equipment and his car, he is al-

ways ready to trace and rectify faults.

this is how nils Dietrich keeps the elec-

tricity flowing reliably.

the Bavarian and thuringian Ministers of economic Affairs

are informed of the progress on the southwestern interconnector

martin Zeil and matthias machnig, the ministers of economic affairs for the Free States of Bavaria and thuringia, see

for themselves the construction progress on the southwestern interconnector in altenfeld, thuringia. the important

line-expansion project from north-eastern to southern germany is also supported politically by both state governments.

3 may 2013

reliaBle OPeratiOn FOr Fair cOmPetitiOn AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 28

eu energy Infrastructure package enters into force

the energy infrastructure Package (eiP) was published in the

Official Journal of the european union on 25 april and thereby

entered into force on 15 may. european union member States

are to implement the eiP as of 1 June.

Fire brigades carry out firefighting exercises at the Freiberg-north substation

more than 60 firefighters train for emergencies at the Freiberg-north (Saxony) substation

using a simulated transformer fire. the substation team works in close cooperation with

the volunteer fire brigades from Bräunsdorf, Wegefahrt and langhennersdorf.

15 may 2013 24 may 2013


ber 2013. maintaining control of the grid situation required the preparation and implementation of increased security re-quirements in a targeted manner in the transmission system as well as redispatch measures with conventional power plants. to a lesser degree, reductions in the input from wind farms also contributed. Xaver caused 53 weather-related trips in lines and other 50hertz grid elements, but there was only a single case of a brief supply interruption.

in 2013, it was necessary to take action on a total of 220 days for the prevention of outage-related overloading of grid elements in the 50hertz transmission system under Section 13 enWg. On 142 days, there was a reduction in renew-ably generated capacity. the end result was a redispatch quantity of 2.1 terawatt-hours (tWh) and a depressed eeg energy supply of 138 gigawatt-hours (gWh).

the system security of the german transmission systems was ensured at all times in 2013.

electricity exchange without borders50hertz is taking a key role in the european electricity exchange. the 50hertz grid area, due to its central location, connects the grids of denmark, Poland and the czech re-public with germany. this is one of the reasons why 50hertz is campaigning for transparent and non-discriminatory grid access as well as for the development of coordinated and harmonized europe-wide market mechanisms. this would allow all stakeholders in society to benefit from free competi-tion in the european electricity market. close interaction be-tween all national and european system partners is always of central importance in this regard.

intensive cooperation makes it easier for 50hertz to exercise its responsibility for the system. thus, 50hertz cooperates closely with the other german and european tSOs in the grid association of the regional group continental europe and the System Operation committee of the european

network of transmission System Operators for electricity (entSO-e). the distribution system operators (dSO) and generators in the 50hertz grid area are equally important partners. 50hertz is also active in the tSO Security coopera-tion (tSc) and coreso security initiatives, the independent

Did you know:“Redispatch” and “countertrading” are

among the preventative and curative

measures within the context of system

responsibility. there are also internal bal-

ancing zone security interventions for the

adjustment of electricity inputs. Redis-

patch is a process that provides for inten-

sified intervention in the operating modes

of generation plants. this permits the pre-

vention or rectification of sudden bottle-

necks in the grid without changing the

overall input power. this is done by lower-

ing the input capacity of one or more pow-

er plants while simultaneously raising the

input capacity of one or more power plants

in a different region.

50Hertz attends the founding of the “Renewables Club” by German Federal environment Minister Altmaier

german Federal environment minister Peter altmaier joins with the environment ministers of nine leading renewable-energy

countries from europe, asia and africa to inaugurate the “renewables club” in order to promote the development of renewable

energy sources worldwide. chair and chief executive Officer Boris Schucht is invited to this exclusive club as an expert.

1 June 2013

security centre in central and western europe, and is an ac-tive member in the committees of entSO-e. together with the technical university of cottbus, 50hertz has been the driving force for the gridlab european training and research centre. With gridlab, 50hertz is making an important contribution to the strengthening of the ability of system operators’ and generators’ operational personnel to act, as well as to the standardization and certification of system- and grid-man-agement processes.

More security for cross-border electricity exchangeunplanned cross-border electricity flows resulting from mod-ified electricity generation structures in germany and eu-rope, along with the resultant electricity trade, have a strong influence on secure system management. For this reason, 50hertz and neighbouring Polish system operator Polskie Sieci elektroenergetyczne S.a. (PSe) agreed contractually on the use of “virtual phase shifters” and the subsequent construction of physical phase-shifting transformers back in december 2012. these permit better coordination during unplanned electricity flows at the border. the agreed meas-ures are intended to ensure system security, to promote the integration of renewable energy sources and to strengthen the european Single market – thanks to additional tradeable transmission capacities between Poland and germany.

in January 2013, 50hertz successfully practised this joint procedure for the first time: electricity flows from germany had exceeded a defined limit and constituted a potential danger to grid stability in Poland. a coordinated intervention in the operating modes of power plants on both sides of the border made it possible to emulate the mitigating effects of a phase-shifting transformer. the pilot phase, which lasted until the end of april 2013, provided valuable information for further refinement of the procedure coordinated between PSe and 50hertz. in the meantime, the agreed construction

of the phase-shifting transformers on both international lines between Poland and germany was already moving forward. the line between mikulowa (Poland) and hagenwerder (germany) is to be equipped by PSe and the line between Krajnik (Poland) and vierraden (germany) by 50hertz.

unplanned electricity flows toward the czech republic also reached a significant magnitude. 50hertz and czech tSO cePS a.s. (cePS) agreed to the use of phase-shifting transformers on the line from hradec (czech republic) to röhrsdorf (germany).

the future operation of the phase-shifting transformers will be optimized across the border and supplemented with internationally agreed grid expansion. to that end, 50hertz is planning a third interconnector to Poland. a new overhead line is to be built between the eisenhüttenstadt substation on the german side and the Plewiska substation on the Polish side. the first step: in mid-January 2013, the regional planning procedure began with the public display of docu-ments. in connection with this, the municipal government of eisenhüttenstadt, the competent regional planning agency of the State of Brandenburg and 50hertz informed citizens and officials about the project in an informational event.

Maximum input from pV plants

On this day, the maximum simultaneous input from photo-

voltaic plants (Pv plants) is reached at 5,346 megawatts (mW),

a new record in the 50hertz grid area.

System operators and earlier public participation

the german Pivereinhg [“gesetz zur verbesserung der Öffentlichkeitsbeteiligung und

vereinheitlichung von Planfeststellungsverfahren”: act for the improvement of Public

Participation and unification of the Public Works Planning Procedure] enters into force.

it stipulates that project promoters give the affected stakeholders the opportunity to

make a statement before the application is filed and to discuss the project accordingly.

5 June 2013 7 June 2013

reliaBle OPeratiOn FOr Fair cOmPetitiOn AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 30

12.05 p.m.location: offshore platform enBW Baltic 1 wind farm Coordinates: 54° 37' n, 12° 38' eAir temperature: 4 °CWind speed: 5 – 8 m/sWave height: 0,5 – 0,7 mWater temperature: 2 – 3 °C

Marian Mügel has been on board at 50Hertz since April 2010. every work day presents him with new challenges. His work as a special technician for offshore cable technology is tru-ly pioneering at times, as is that of his colleagues. essen-tial offshore equipment: survival suit, life vest, crew finder, helmet with emergency light, rescue climbing harness, thermalunderwear and coldprotection gloves.


the implementation of the energy revolution requires pro-gress in the optimization of the existing grids as well as in the reinforcement and expansion of the grid. this is always the result of a process that is planned carefully over the long term and coordinated with many stakeholders.

the grid development plan (nep) – basis for the grid of the futurein its 2013 onshore neP, 50hertz recommended a total of 20 line measures, grid reinforcements and new construction projects for “Scenario B2023”. the measures to be re-evalu-ated with a view to further development of renewable energy sources were classified as “to be observed”; all others were classified as urgent. all measures classified as urgent by 50hertz were confirmed by the Federal network agency (Bnetza) on 8 January 2014. 50hertz will initiate further planning and approval steps for these measures in 2014.

the first german neP for the extra-high-voltage grid made its onshore début in 2012. in 2013 the focus was on the first O-neP. the O-neP lists all measures for an incremental, needs-based and economical expansion of the offshore grid over the next ten or twenty years. the transmission system operators (tSO) produced a criteria catalogue with the aim of providing a temporal staggering of the necessary grid-con-nection systems. the O-neP enables better coordination of expansion plans for offshore wind farms and grid-connection systems in the Baltic Sea (50hertz) and in the north Sea (tennet). citizens, federal states, associations and compa-nies took advantage of the opportunity to comment on both nePs. 50hertz then submitted the reviewed reports to the Bnetza in summer 2013 for confirmation.

in “Scenario B2023”, the 2013 O-neP provided for the ad-dition of four grid-connection systems for the Baltic Sea for the transmission of offshore-generated wind energy to the lubmin grid-connection point. all connection systems were confirmed by the Federal network agency. the agency

was also largely in favour of the process recommended for the first time by the tSOs for the temporal staggering of measures.

in “Scenario B2023”, the 2013 O-neP provided for four grid- connection systems for the Baltic Sea for the transmission of offshore-generated wind energy. all were confirmed by the Federal network agency. the agency was also largely in favour of the process recommended for the first time by the tSOs for the temporal staggering of the measures.

in July 2013, a new tool for coordinating the expansion of the grid entered into force: the BBPlg [“Bundesbedarfsplange-setz”: german Federal requirements Plan act]. this statute authoritatively establishes the energy-economic necessity and urgent need for the projects contained therein. the statute also newly regulates the approval process for the specifica-tion of transmission corridors in projects that cross state borders. in the future, this will be in the hands of the Federal network agency. the processes are not only supposed to be simplified, they are also supposed to guarantee early and comprehensive provision of information for the public and participation of the public in order to accelerate the expansion of the grid.

50hertz publishes the nePs jointly with the other tSOs on the “www.netzentwicklungsplan.de” platform. the website also provides information on public information and dialogue events, shows consultation results and gives an overview of all projects.

Particularly in north-eastern germany, the integration of re-newable energy from volatile sources has advanced further than anywhere else in the world. all predictions are made on the assumption that there will be a further strong increase in installed capacity from wind and solar by 2024. generation and consumption, in the meantime, are moving farther and farther apart geographically than has so far been the case

Infrastructure expansion with ensured environmental protection

50Hertz signs German–norwegian declaration

50hertz joins 20 companies and environmental associations in signing the

german–norwegian declaration for long-term cooperation in the integration of

renewable energy sources and in climate protection. One of the objectives is

closer cooperation between both countries with regard to electricity trading.

German Regulation on Reserve power plants adopted

the german Federal cabinet adopts the resKv [“reservekraftwerksverord-

nung”: german regulation on reserve Power Plants]. the resKv enters into

force on 6 July. 50hertz benefits from the so-called “Winter Ordinance” mainly

through the use of reserve power plants for redispatch.

11 June 2013 12 June 2013

http://www.netzentwicklungsplan.de

inFraStructure eXPanSiOn With enSured envirOnmental PrOtectiOn AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 34

First phase of construction completed at the Wolmirstedt substation

the first phase of construction at the Wolmirstedt substation construction site is completed,

and so the 380/110-kilovolt (kv) transformer number 412 is released for permanent operation.

the trial operation for the transformer and the associated 110-kv line to the glindenberger

Weg substation of regional supplier e.On commenced the day before.

19 June 2013


with existing coal and nuclear power plants. this increas-ing distance makes it necessary to build new, long-distance transmission lines across germany.

A good connection for the energy revolution – the southwestern interconnectoranother link in the energy revolution chain is well on the way: the southwestern interconnector through thuringia will supply Bavaria with additional electricity via transregional transmission of energy from renewable and conventional sources during the phase-out of nuclear power.

resolutions by the european union in 2006 as well as by the Bundestag (german Federal Parliament) and Bundesrat (ger-man Federal council) in 2009 (the enlag [“energieleitungs-ausbaugesetz”: energy line extension act] have given the southwestern interconnector the force of law. the line, also known as the “thüringer Strombrücke” [thuringian electric-ity bridge], enjoys top priority as a european priority project. enlag declares an urgent need for 24 grid projects with 380-kilovolts (kv) capacity. as an enlag project, the south-western interconnector is also part of the so-called starter network in the neP, which forms the basis for the BBPlg.

in line with the german phase-out of atomic energy, the nu-clear power plant in grafenrheinfeld is due to leave the grid in 2015. the Bnetza highlighted the importance of grid expan-sion in its “report on the status of grid-bound energy supply in winter 2012/13”. the report explicitly stresses that the comple-tion of the southwestern interconnector is indispensable for the secure shutdown of the grafenrheinfeld nuclear power plant in december 2015.

50hertz is building the southwestern interconnector between Bad lauchstädt (Saxony-anhalt) and the border with thur-ingia in three construction segments. When completed, the 380-kv overhead line will serve as a transregional electricity-transmission line from north to south – from the elec-

tricity generators to the consumers. 50hertz is planning investments of around 250 million euros for the almost 200- kilometre-long southwestern interconnector in thuringia.

the first segment of the southwestern interconnector has been in operation since 18 december 2008 between the lauchstädt and vieselbach substations. construction rights for the second segment of the 380-kv overhead line from the vieselbach substation to the substation in altenfeld have been obtained since then. On 3 may 2013, the ministers of economic affairs for the Free States of Bavaria and thur-ingia, martin Zeil and matthias machnig, saw for themselves the construction progress in altenfeld, thuringia. the substation in altenfeld forms the link from the second line segment (erfurt-vieselbach to altenfeld), which is under con-struction, to the third segment (altenfeld to redwitz). Both ministers, while on site, made reference to the objective of putting the southwestern interconnector into operation as soon as 2015, so that the grafenrheinfeld nuclear power plant in Bavaria can be removed from the grid as planned without endangering the level of security of supply. the third segment extends from altenfeld to redwitz. 50hertz had submitted the public-works planning documents on time to the thuringian State administration Office in Weimar for the sub-segment from altenfeld to the thuringia–Bavaria state border. On 19 September 2013, the thuringian State administration Office in Weimar officially initiated the public-works planning procedure for the third segment of the southwestern interconnector.

large-scale projects of the German transmission system operators: direct-current (HVDC) linksFour high-capacity direct-current links (high-voltage direct-current links – hvdc links) are planned in germany as part of the expansion of sustainable grids. these large-scale projects are enormously important to the energy revolution. 50hertz and the three other german transmission-system operators, amprion gmbh (amprion), tennet tSO gmbh

transmission system operators and offshore wind-farm operators strengthen cooperation for

the expansion of wind energy in the north Sea and in the Baltic Sea

50hertz enters into closer cooperation with tennet tSO gmbh (tennet) and corporate operators to stabilise

the expansion of offshore wind energy efficiently and to use the existing connection capacities effectively.

20 June 2013

(tennet) and transnetBW gmbh (transnetBW), are respon-sible for their implementation. the hvdc links will transmit energy from northern and central germany to the south. the necessity of the project is described in the 2012 neP. the german Bundestag, within the context of the BBPlg, has legally declared the necessity of three of the four hvdc cor-ridors. each of these hvdc links is being planned jointly by two tSOs, i.e., those responsible for the respective starting points and end points of the existing transmission system:

– emden-Borssum–Osterath: tennet/amprion– Osterath–Philippsburg: amprion/transnetBW– Wilster–grafenrheinfeld: tennet/transnetBW – Brunsbüttel–großgartach: tennet/transnetBW– Bad lauchstädt–meitingen: 50hertz/amprion

transmission corridors are first specified concretely by the Federal network agency in the Federal Planning. Starting points are generally located in regions with surplus genera-tion. endpoints are, for example, regions with high con-sumption or with nuclear power-plant locations that have to be shut down by 2022.

the direct-current technology permits low-loss transmis-sion of large amounts of energy. another advantage: it stabilises the existing alternating-current grid. the energy can also be delivered in a targeted manner to where it is consumed. direct current is especially useful over long distances and for large transmission capacities. as a result, the new electricity highways will contribute greatly to the security of the energy supply. the massive expan-sion of renewable energy sources in northern and eastern germany is already causing bottlenecks in the transmission of electricity to southern germany. Building a high-capacity interconnector to the south will allow input restrictions for wind farms to be reduced and electricity flows to be better controlled. a directional load flow along the length of the planned, long north-south links would otherwise only be

attainable using multiple parallel 3-phase alternating-cur-rent lines, and would create a high demand for new routes.

Well on the way: the South–east Direct-Current passagethe South–east direct-current Passage is one of the impor-tant new electricity routes between northern and southern germany for the implementation of the energy revolution. the roughly 450-kilometre-long high-voltage direct-current (hvdc) link between Saxony-anhalt and Bavaria is due to go into operation in 2022. this electricity line is described as corridor d in the 2012 neP. in may 2013, the german Bundestag resolved to anchor it in the BBPlg as Project no. 5 (lauchstädt–meitingen high-voltage line). With that, it was declared an energy policy necessity by the german Federal government and the german Bundestag. it will be built between the two grid-connection points – the lauchstädt substation near halle (Saxony-anhalt) and the meitingen substation near augsburg (Bavaria) – as a 500-kv direct-current overhead line.

the South–east direct-current Passage is a joint project of 50hertz and tSO amprion: 50hertz is the contact part-ner for the Federal States of Saxony, Saxony-anhalt and thuringia, and amprion is the contact partner for Bavaria. 50hertz and amprion have formed a joint project team for this. the initial planning steps have already begun in both companies. the investment costs are over a billion euros. in 2013, 50hertz informed the public in Weimar and halle about the planning status of the South–east direct-current Passage. the application for Federal Planning is planned for the beginning of 2014. With that, the first step for onshore hvdc links in germany is taken.

the South–east direct-current Passage also makes an essential contribution to the security of supply in neighbour-ing countries to the east of germany. electricity flows from north-eastern germany through Poland and the czech

50Hertz shareholder IFM Investors opens office in Berlin

iFm investors (uK) ltd (iFm investors), a 50hertz shareholder and

one of the world’s largest infrastructure investment companies, opens its new

office in Berlin. this gives the australian company an additional presence

in europe outside of london.

large-scale energy-transition project commences:

South–east Direct-Current passage will link the Halle and Augsburg regions

50hertz and transmission system operator (tSO) amprion gmbh (amprion), jointly plan

a high-capacity, high-voltage direct-current (hvdc) electricity line from Saxony-anhalt to

Bavaria. the necessity of the link from the halle area to the area surrounding augsburg

has been legally anchored in the german Federal requirements Plan.

24 June 2013 26 June 2013



republic to southern german will be more controllable in the future. this will also provide some relief for the transmission systems. converters at the end points of the line convert the energy from alternating current to direct current and vice versa. the exact locations of the converters have not yet been decided. they will be discussed publicly with the affected municipalities and citizens before the start of the approval process.

A contribution to grid stability between Bärwalde and Schmöllnthe increasing input from renewable energy sources into the grid as well as the new 675-megawatt power-plant block in Boxberg necessitate the reconstruction of the 380-kv line from the Boxberg power plant to the Schmölln substation. the line dates back to the days of east germany and no longer meets the requirements. the new line will have a sub-stantially higher current-carrying capacity than the existing line. this will allow it to fulfil all requirements for grid stability. the public-works planning decision was issued in February 2013 for the construction of the 380-kv Bärwalde–Schmölln overhead line. the first segment of the new Bärwalde–Schmölln expansion has been in operation since 25 October 2013. 50hertz built it parallel to the existing line using 70 towers. the existing line and the new line were first linked in one system, a construction method that places high demands above all on occupational safety and logistics. as soon as the new system is in operation, 50hertz will com-pletely dismantle the old line. the 380-kv line is scheduled for completion in October 2014. during the construction phase, the substations in Schmölln and Bärwalde will also be upgraded.

progress with approvals and with line construction in the wider 50Hertz areathe public-works planning decision for the western seg-ment of the 380-kv Berlin north ring line was issued in the third quarter of 2013. Over the course of the year, 50hertz

increased the transmission capacity of the line segment between vierraden and Krajnik. the public-works planning decision for the vierraden loop-in was issued in may 2013.

50hertz completed and put into operation the first segment of the new 380-kv system at the Wolmirstedt substation. 50hertz completely disconnected the existing 220/110-kv transformer when it placed the two 380/110-kv transform-ers in operation in June 2013. the Förderstedt site will also be converted to a 380/110-kv transformer in the future. construction and installation work began once the neces-sary approvals were issued in 2013. in addition, the alten-treptow/north substation for the connection of the Werder–Kessin onshore wind farm was brought on line on 30 august 2013. line connections at the Perleberg substation were modified in the course of adding two 380/110-kv transform-ers at the site. in addition, the first of the two transformers went into operation in november 2013.

More and more land in sight for Baltic-Sea electricity 50hertz is bringing and will continue to bring german electricity onshore from the Baltic Sea. Offshore wind power is an important component of the german energy revolu-tion. as such, it is also necessary to make investments in the offshore wind-farm connections, so that the electricity can be efficiently connected to the onshore grid. in 2013, 50hertz took another important step for the use of offshore wind energy at the Baltic Sea coast. On 16 december 2013, applications were submitted to the ministry of energy of the State of mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and to the german Federal maritime and hydrographic agency for ap-proval of six submarine cable systems for the connection of the planned Westlich adlergrund and arkona See wind-farm cluster, northeast of the island of rügen, to the grid. the ca-ble routes arrive onshore at the 50hertz lubmin substation, and each extends 90 kilometres at sea and three kilometres on land. engineers, geologists and town and country plan-ners worked for a year and a half on the task. the Baltic

50Hertz attends the eu policy Conference on energy policy objectives

and environmentally compatible, socially acceptable grid expansion

at the eu Policy conference in Brussels, energy commissioner günther h. Oettinger discusses with association del-

egates and with the renewables grid initiative chair and 50hertz communications chief Olivier Feix how things stand

with the implementation of the european energy objectives and what motivation the eu should provide for the future.

27 June 2013

Sea floor was investigated extensively and at great cost. Furthermore, experts prepared numerous assessments re-garding environmental compatibility and technical feasibility. good progress was also made in 2013 on work to connect

the enBW Baltic 2 wind farm, off the coast of the island of rügen, to the grid. thus, in the past year it was possible to pull all necessary submarine cables for the connection of Baltic 2 into the offshore platform for enBW Baltic 1, through

transmission system operators and intermunicipal associations

want to increase cooperation with regard to grid expansion

at a meeting in Berlin, 50hertz and the three other german transmission system

operators agree to consolidate their cooperation with intermunicipal associations.

German Federal Requirements plan enters into force

the Bundesrat passed the BBPlg [“Bundesbedarfsplangesetz”:

german Federal requirements Plan act] on 7 June 2013. On 27 July,

the BBPlg entered into force with a series of important grid-development

measures from the 2012 grid development plan (neP).

17 July 2013 27 July 2013



which the Baltic 2 electricity is also due to flow in the future. Starting from the Baltic 1 platform, the two submarine cables running between the platforms for enBW Baltic 1 and enBW Baltic 2 were already largely jetted into the Baltic

Sea floor by special ship mv aura. these segments can be completed with the availability of the Baltic 2 platform. a second submarine cable, for the connection of enBW Baltic 2, will be laid from the Baltic 1 platform to the landing point in

50Hertz and tu Ilmenau agree to a close cooperation

under the banner of the energy revolution

50hertz and the ilmenau university of technology (tu ilmenau) sign a

framework agreement for energy-related research and development ser-

vices. the agreement expands the existing, almost ten-year cooperation.

50Hertz – partner of the German environment and Media Award

the annual presentation of the greentec awards, europe’s biggest

environmental and business awards, takes place at a gala in Berlin.

the award in the “energy” category is presented by Boris Schucht, chair

and chief executive Officer of 50hertz, together with chef Sarah Wiener.

22 august 2013 23 august 2013

markgrafenheide, rostock. From there, the onshore cable route leads to the Bentwisch substation. according to the plan, enBW Baltic 2 is due to comprise eighty systems and an installed capacity of 288 megawatts (mW). the construction of the wind farm and the grid connection

once again place significantly higher demands on engineers and technicians than the first wind farm, enBW Baltic 1, which was connected in may 2011 with its 48 mW. the reasons for this are the substantially greater offshore distance, water depths of over thirty metres and a very heterogeneous construction surface.

energetic German–Danish cooperation: Kriegers Flak Combined Grid Solutionthe “Kriegers Flak combined grid Solution” (cgS) is a pilot project for an offshore transmission system in the Baltic Sea. the enBW Baltic 2 wind farm under construction 35 kilometres off the coast of rügen plays an essential part in the project. From there, a link to denmark is due to be established via the danish Kriegers Flak wind farm. this link would then allow electricity to be transmitted to denmark as well as to germany. 50hertz has already taken the first step towards the realization of the project: on 15 november, 50hertz submitted the appropriate application documents to the mining authority responsible for the exclusive eco-nomic zone and to the german Federal maritime and hy-drographic agency. these documents relate to the approval of the eight-kilometre-long link in german waters between the transformer platforms for enBW Baltic 2 and Kriegers Flak. the other eight kilometres of the link are in danish territorial waters and will be planned by project partner en-erginet.dk. two 150-kv cables are due to link the platforms in the future. 50hertz and danish tSO energinet.dk want to realise them cooperatively. the “Kriegers Flak combined grid Solution” project is funded by the european union. it is the first project to combine national grid connections of offshore wind farms with a cross-border interconnector in the Baltic Sea. this combination facilitates the use of renewable energy sources as well as international electricity trading and the strengthening of system security.

Did you know:the public-works planning procedure is

an administrative procedure. It is used

to create the legal basis for approval for

the construction of a project that is im-

portant to the region. In contrast to other

plans (e.g. state development plans, land-

scape program, development plans), the

public-works planning procedure relates

to a specific project. the essential diffe-

rence as opposed to a typical adminis-

trative procedure: the public-works plan-

ning procedure stipulates extensive parti-

cipation of citizens and public authorities

whose areas of responsibility are affec-

ted by the project.

50Hertz – Security Conference: system operations under the banner of the energy revolution

representatives from the fields of electricity generation, transmission and distribution as well as repre-

sentatives of universities, associations, public authorities and consulting firms take part in 50hertz’s sixth

Security conference in Berlin. they gather to discuss the present and future security of the electricity

supply within the context of the energy revolution.

27 – 28 august 2013



Grid-expansion projects gain momentumGrid-expansion projects since 2009

Project Project status Line length

1 vierraden – Krajnik (section) Operational 3 km

2 northern line hamburg – Schwerin Operational 65 km

3 South-western interconnector 1 lauchstädt – vieselbach Operational 76 km

4 remptendorf – redwitz high-temperature cable (thuringia/Bavaria border) Operational 18 km

5 enBW Baltic 1 offshore wind farm Operational 75 km

6 altentreptow north substation grid connection Operational 1 km

7 Perleberg substation capacity expansion Operational 2 km

8 migration from 220 kv to 380 kv, ragow – thyrow and ragow – Wustermark Operational 3 km

9 reconstruction of eula – großdalzig for Schlehnhain surface mine Operational 6 km

10 Stendal / West substation grid connection Operational 1 km

11 South-west interconnector 2, vieselbach – altenfeld under construction 57 km

12 Förderstedt substation 380 kv grid connection under construction 12 km

13 Bärwalde – Schmölln 380 kv overhead line under construction 46 km

14 Wolmirstedt 380 kv upgrade under construction 6 km

15 enBW Baltic 2 offshore wind farm under construction ~ 120 km

16 SW interconnector 3 altenfeld – redwitz (to thuringia / Bavaria border) in planning-approval process ~ 26 km

17 3rd interconnector to Poland in regional-planning process ~ 10 km

18 380 kv Berlin northern ring Prior to planning-approval process ~ 80 km

19 uckermark line neuenhagen – vierraden – Bertikow in planning-approval process ~ 120 km

20 Bertikow – Pasewalk Prior to federal planning stage ~ 45 km

21 Wolmirstedt – Perleberg Prior to planning-approval process ~ 100 km

22 Offshore connection in the Baltic Sea in approval process ~ 70 – 90 km

23 combined grid Solution in approval process ~ 15 km

24 Bad lauchstädt – meitingen Prior to federal planning stage ~ 450 km

Operational: 250 km

Under construction: 240 km

In the approval process: ~ 450 km

Lower Saxony

Schleswig-Holstein


Brandenburg

Berlin

Saxony

Saxony-Anhalt

Hesse

Hamburg

Thuringia

Bavaria

PSEPoland


Denmark

TenneT

TenneT

C EPSCzech Republic

110

380+220

220

110

220

220

220150

150

220

Güstrow

Gera

LeipzigHalle

Erfurt

Eisenach

Rostock

Schwerin

DresdenWeimar

Potsdam

Cottbus

Chemnitz

Zwickau

Jena

Magdeburg

Frankfurt (Oder)

Neu-brandenburg

1

3

4

2

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

17

16

18 19

20

21

22

23

24

Existing grid

Planning stage

Approval stage

Under construction

Completed

Other companies

HVDC / DC connection

Conventional power plant ( lignite-fired, coal-fired or gas-turbine power plant ), pumped-storage plant, onshore / offshore wind farm Under construction / planned

Switching stations

Switching stations planned / under construction

Other companies

legend

Stat

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Dec

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3

1.32 p.m.location: transmission tower no. 108 Coordinates: 51° 24' n, 11° 53' etemperature: 4 °CWind speed: 2 – 5 m/sHeight: 73 mWeight: 90 – 100 tonnes

Carsten Gräfe has been a head fitter for 50Hertz since 1985. He is also helping to complete the southwestern interconnector as a site supervisor. the tallest transmission tower that he has climbed was 95 m high. And he has also completed repairs atgreat heights in icy temperatures of -15°C.


the conversion of the grid infrastructure also always means that the relevant region is affected. For 50hertz, a key focus is to optimise the line in consideration of all protected natural resources and to minimise the impact on humans and nature. 50hertz particularly focuses on technical coordination with the responsible nature conservation and forest authori-ties during planning – as well as the involvement of the affected communities. 50hertz avoids densely populated wherever possible. and landscape conservation is also a high priority during so-called corridor planning. depending on the position of the cable routes, 50hertz takes existing overhead line routes or other infrastructure (railway routes, motorways) into account. to ensure that the landscape is not unnecessarily impaired, 50hertz also adapts the routes to the landscape conditions.

Bundling principlethe bundling principle in the search for appropriate routes protects connected natural areas. as a result, in the third section of the southwestern interconnector through the thuringian Forest the line route follows the existing infrastruc-ture where possible as well as the new ice ebensfeld–erfurt route that is currently under construction. the same applies for the new overhead-line route in the north–south direction. 50hertz is bundling this with other linear infrastructure meas-ures (such as rail tracks or existing overhead lines). the new route is also well away from settlements in order to minimise the impact on humans.

the thuringian Forest landscape is a particular focus for the 50hertz planners. as a result, 50hertz is striving to ensure that the route is kept level without any noticeable offsets in the transmission-tower heights. the transmission-tower locations are also generally kept below the terrain peaks. in addition, long spans ensure that valley sites are virtually unaffected by overhead lines. especially in the third section, most of which runs through the thuringian Forest, 50hertz is taking a number of measures to protect the for-

est. For example, in planning 50hertz is already using the existing forest aisles as transmission-tower locations. new aisles are only created to the extent absolutely necessary.

ecological management of overhead linesto operate the overhead lines, 50hertz is applying an ecological aisle management concept for the southwestern interconnector, for which the forest can develop up to a maximum height below the overhead lines. all of this is inte-grated into the planning for the transmission-tower locations and minimizes the impact on the forested area.

in 2010, supported by the european community and in cooperation with other partners, 50hertz published the comprehensive “ecological management of overhead lines” study. the study contains an interdisciplinary approach for the ecological management of high-voltage overhead lines, which can also be applied in various european regions.the concept does not just aim to reduce the impact on the landscape. it also highlights the various aspects of impact prevention, impact minimization and ecological compatibility in connection with the introduction of aisles and their mainte-nance. the reason for the study was the planned construc-tion of the southwestern interconnector.

protection of birds50hertz takes various measures to support better protection for birds. For example, the large insulation distance for the planned 380-kilovolt (kv) lines prevents birds from receiving electric shocks. 50hertz also uses multiple conductors that consist of several conductor cables. they are more easily detected by birds compared to individual cables. 50hertz takes even greater precautions at particularly sensitive locations, such as at waterway crossings or river valleys. in these places, 50hertz attaches markings to the earthing cables, which considerably improves their visibility. transmission towers also provide birds with additional nesting op- tions, a welcome side effect of the towers. in north-eastern

High level of expertise in matters pertaining to the environment and the future

Federal economics Minister Rösler visits a 50Hertz culvert in Berlin

Federal economics minister dr. rösler visits the culvert for the 50hertz

380-kilovolts (kv) diagonal connection, which is the backbone of the Berlin

electricity supply. the tunnel, which is over eleven kilometres in length, is

unique in germany.

28 august 2013

high level OF eXPertiSe in matterS Pertaining tO the envirOnment and the Future AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 46

50Hertz interactive exhibition is awarded by the German uneSCo

Commission for education for sustainable development

the german uneScO commission distinguished the 50hertz interactive “energie

gemeinsam wenden” (revolutionize energy together) exhibition, jointly developed

with the independent institute for environmental issues (ufu), as a model project

as part of the un “education for sustainable development” decade.

Sport and fitness day in a family atmosphere

50hertz organized the 3rd sport and fitness day for their employees and

families as well as colleagues from Belgium. at a sports ground in Straus-

berg, near Berlin, the program included activities such as football, bowling,

volleyball and the fun-sport Olympics, all in the name of health.

6 September 2013 14 September 2013


germany, ospreys now prefer nesting on transmission towers rather than on trees. Falcons and ravens also tend to use these towers. For many years, 50hertz has been actively supporting the protection of these birds, which just a few decades ago were threatened with extinction. the commitment ranges from the construction of nesting aids through to the ringing of young birds.

operational environmental protection50hertz ensures that water-polluting substances and techni-cal gases are handled with the utmost care, as well as the correct disposal of waste. 50hertz also places particular emphasis on emission control and nature conservation at technical installations. all of this places great demands on the planning, construction and operation of the installations. 50hertz regularly controls and upgrades the environmental facilities at substations. noise protection measures have also been implemented. Based on its efficient emergency planning and disaster concept, 50hertz is able to rapidly contain and rectify environmental events. the high level of environmental protection is ensured by active environmental management as well as through constant training as well as raising awareness amongst employees.

Compensation and substitution measures as part of the line construction projects, the new 50hertz lines cross nature and landscape areas and have an una-voidable impact on plants, animals and the landscape. as a result, 50hertz plans, implements and maintains numerous nature conservation compensation and substitution meas-ures. this generally leads to the revaluation of nature and the landscape at the same or at another location. approx. 200 of these measures were supported in 2013. numerous tree plantings, the renaturation of water bodies as well as restora-tion and maintenance measures were performed in close co-operation with local stakeholders. Preventive measures were implemented in cooperation with the competent authorities in order to protect endangered species. For example, coastal

nesting places were provided for bats and birds and rock piles were provided for sand lizards. eyries are secured and relocated to appropriate places, ants nests are shifted and small mammals are protected.

example of pure spruce stands: in connection with the unavoidable forest aisle removal in the thuringian Forest, species-rich mixed forests are promoted instead of monoto-nous pure spruce stands. tree species such as common beech, silver fir and harewood are used for this.

example of mountain pastures: the existence of many pastures is threatened. the clearance of shrubs and long-term maintenance allows these characteristic pastures, which are the habitat for numerous threatened plant species (e.g. orchids), to be preserved.

example of old buildings: the dismantling of tumbledown buildings clears recreation landscapes.

the restoration of historic gardens: as an example of an outstanding project among the 133 compensation meas-ures for the second section of the southwestern intercon-nector between vieselbach and altenfeld, the garden at Kannawurf castle, which was first established in 1595, will soon be given a new lease of life. the area will first be care-fully examined by archaeologists. Possible discoveries will be documented or even salvaged.

Reforestation: the 380-kv north line, which became oper-ational at the end of 2012, also had an impact on forests. to compensate for this impact, 50hertz reforested an approx. 225 hectare forest in Schleswig-holstein. 50hertz was able to welcome the Schleswig-holstein chamber of agriculture as a partner many years ago in the search for appropriate reforestation areas. a compensation area covering about 53 hectares is located near Kellinghusen. horses were once bred on the imperial stud farm located there. the forest

Altentreptow north substation: grid connection for 140-megawatt (MW) wind farm with hydrogen power storage

the new altentreptow north substation was officially commissioned and brought the powerful mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

wind farm onto the grid. the 140-mW system with 7.5-mW wind turbines and internal hydrogen power storage was commis-

sioned by the mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Premier erwin Sellering.

19 September 2013

belongs to the state of Schleswig-holstein and is looked after by the state forestry authority. Well protected against deer and wild boar, plants are thriving in an area that was used for military training until 2004. ten percent of the area is populated by trees with a target of twelve percent.

50Hertz compensation measures set an exampleStudents from the velten secondary school are gaining first-hand experience of the expansion of the electricity-trans-mission grid in germany. teacher helmut Quade read in a newspaper about the upcoming compensation and substi-tution measures as part of the line-expansion project. he immediately asked the secondary school to talk to 50hertz. the velten 1st secondary school maintains a nature trail along the route of the 380-kv Berlin northern ring. in the spring, they asked 50hertz whether they could participate in the compensation and substitution measures planned in the western construction section. On 6 december 2013, 50hertz signed a corresponding cooperation agreement with velten’s mayor, ines hübner, and Principal herbert gorr.

the velten school and 50hertz intend to participate in four fields of work in order to utilise the 380-kv Berlin northern ring as a learning field. the students will support 50hertz in their species-conservation measures, among other things. For example, the installation of, in part, self-constructed nesting boxes for breeding birds and bats. Students will also establish alternative homes for squirrels. in addition to technical support, 50hertz will provide students with a whole range of tools and materials for the project work. When he arrived to sign the agreement, Project manager Sven riedel didn’t just bring his work clothes, boots, gloves and rain jacket. he also surprised the students with material that they need to create information signs and to document the activities.

Voluntary measures for even less electrosmog50hertz naturally complies with the limit values for electri-

cal and magnetic fields specified by the 26th BimSchv [“Bundes-immissionsschutzverordnung”: german Federal emission Protection Ordinance] for all its lines. But 50hertz takes it a step further: taking a precautionary approach, 50hertz also takes measures to reduce electrical and mag-netic fields. For example, for the southwestern interconnec-tor, these include:

– laying out the subconductors for each line bundle in the form of a square

– the optimization of the arrangement of the phase assign-ment of the two overhead-line systems for the 380-kv southwestern interconnector for the “donau” transmission-tower types

– ensuring a minimum clearance of the overhead lines to the ground of 9.50 meters

– the entrainment of an earthed fibre-optic overhead cable at the height of the lower transmission lines

– the installation of the overhead line as far away from settlements as possible (but generally within the survey corridor defined in the regional planning decision)

Innovation management50hertz is committed to research and development to ad-dress future-related issues that affect the company’s various fields of activity. as part of the grid expansion, 50hertz is promoting technologies to make better use of routes, to improve public acceptance of overhead-line projects and to support system security. For example, in 2013, 50hertz started a project to develop space-optimized overhead lines, which is being funded by the Federal ministry for the economy and technology over a period of five years. the challenge: the optimization and expansion of electricity grids is extremely important for the integration of renewable energy sources. however, the required routing and establishment of new overhead lines is increasingly faced with acceptance problems by the affected citizens. Key reasons include the expected impact on the landscape and nature conserva-


offshore cable storage

the topping-out ceremony showed that the construction work for the new

warehouse is on track. the 50hertz 50-by-25-metre hall will house the

replacement cable lengths for the offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea.

Customer meetings: “In Spreewald the water does not separate, it connects”

50hertz hosted the annual workshop in the Spreewald with executive boards and

managing directors of major customers it its grid area. 50hertz used this to create a

platform for the intensive and constant exchange of ideas on current topics in order

to work together to better deal with the challenges of the energy revolution.

20 September 2013 27 September 2013


tion. the increasing number of citizen campaigns against overhead-line projects adds to the long and difficult approval process for 50hertz. the solution approach: the aim of the projects is to develop innovative space-optimized overhead lines that are characterised by their low spatial impact (low height and route width). the project involves the required fundamental research and the relevant implementation and evaluation of mechanical and electrical trials. a test facility will be established to analyse the lines with respect to their technical feasibility.

the compactline project stands for the innovative, com-pact construction of 380-kv overhead lines in order to keep

the “landscape occupancy” as low as possible and to increase public acceptance of overhead-line projects. this project intends to research the basic principles for space-optimized overhead lines and establish a test facility that will be used to examine the technical feasibility. the new over-head-line system will consist of innovative chain designs and cable systems with low cable sag and be constructed using more compact transmission towers. Following the success-ful implementation and evaluation of the tests, we then plan to demonstrate the technical feasibility in a test facility.

eight transmission system operators, various manufacturers and research facilities as well as other partners are working on five demonstration projects in the BeSt PathS project. these help to remove grid-side barriers for the secure integration of power from renewable energy sources into the european transmission system. the focus for 50hertz is the “irock.eu” demonstration project. the solution approach: the objective is to increase the transmission capacity of ex-isting ac lines. For example, 50hertz is planning to system-atically examine and evaluate high-temperature conductor technologies (ht/htlS) together with project partners. the starting point is comprehensive market research, which will identify appropriate technologies, their characteristics and manufacturers. Based on these results, six to eight preferred technologies will be selected and subjected to a mechani-cal and electrical investigation and evaluation. this is then expected to be followed by the installation and analysis of a test facility in order to draw conclusions for further use.

in order to ensure that submarine cables for the grid con-nection of offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea are ad-equately protected against damage caused by anchors or trawl nets, for example, these have to be installed in various sea floors. in the past, submarine cables have first been laid on the sea floor before being jetted in using a so-called “light jet”. For hard subsurfaces, additional trenches were constructed using conventional excavators prior to installing

Did you know:the connection of a transport path or a

line between two locations is called a

route. For so-called precise routing, the

detailed technical route planning takes

place vertically and horizontally. Be-

sides, the transmission-tower locations,

the height, width and shape also play a

rolein order to ensure the protection of

the landscape and the public interest.

the european Commission adopts a list of central energy-infrastructure projects with five 50Hertz projects

the european commission adopts the first list of central energy-infrastructure projects, the “Projects of common interest” (Pci)

these projects will receive accelerated approval processes. Particular focuses for 50hertz are the south–east direct-current

passage and the combined grid Solution to denmark.

6 October 2013

the cable. this was extremely time and cost intensive, did not always ensure success and had a high impact on the marine environment. the solution approach: the current project to connect the grid to the enBW Baltic 2 offshore wind farm uses a newly developed submarine tracked vehi-cle. this Searex is a multi-functional unit that installs cables and flushes them in, with a flushing power of 1,200 kW, in one operation. Searex weighs about 60 tonnes and moves over the sea floor independently. it is controlled from the cable-laying ship. For hard ground, it can also be equipped with a stone crusher and construct a trench into which the cable is then laid. this saves time and leads to better results than for customary procedures.

the Sdl-Batt project deals with the development of electrical energy storage for balancing power plants and to provide grid-stabilization services. this involves the test-ing of various ancillary services and the comparison of their efficiency and performance. the challenge: the high share of wind and photovoltaic power in the grid is already leading to localized grid overcapacity. as a result, 50hertz is seeing demand for local ancillary services (aS) that were previ-ously covered by conventional power plants. in addition, the increasing volatility of electricity generation is expected to lead to a rise in the demand for balancing capacity, which will need to be covered by additional providers. the solution approach: electrochemical battery stores have very good characteristics for the provision of aS as well as a very high controllability. the project shows the development of a highly efficient battery store as a balancing power plant and for the provision of grid-stabilization services. various aS will be tested and their efficiency will be compared. the provision of aS and testing are being considered based on a 10 megawatt (mW) battery system, which is expected to be constructed in 2014.

adele-ing is an engineering project which will establish the first demonstration facility for adiabatic compressed-air stor-

age technology. the challenge: the increasing share of pow-er from renewable energy sources and the fall in conven-tional power-plant capacities is increasing the requirements for flexibility on the market and grid. in particular, 50hertz is seeing that, in the short-term, there is an increasing need for bottleneck management as well as short-term fluctuation compensation. the solution approach: besides the grid ex-pansion, central mass-storage technologies are an option to overcome these challenges. adiabatic compressed-air stor-age is one of these technologies, which offers a high poten-tial for providing the large-scale storage capacities required in the future and which are on roughly the same magnitude as pumped storage. the collaborative r&d project aims to take the necessary steps to prepare for the construction of the first demonstration facility. 50hertz’s objectives are to establish the framework conditions for the market and grid integration of adiabatic compressed-air storage.


50Hertz at the 23rd Rennsteig autumn run in the thuringian Forest

50hertz continues its regional commitment in thuringia as a partner in the

rennsteig autumn run. in drizzle and visibility below 50 metres, the 450

motivated runners, including a 50hertz team, headed to the start of the

half-marathon track which has a rich tradition.

50Hertz provides offshore rescue helicopter for the Baltic Sea

50hertz, together with “drF luftrettung” provided a specially equipped rescue helicopter

for use on the sea. the helicopter is stationed in güttin on the isle of rügen and strength-

ens the rescue chain for those involved in the development of offshore wind energy.

6 October 2013 7 October 2013

3.20 p.m.location: School in Mecklenburg-Western pomerania Interactive exhibition “Revolutionize energy together” Coordinates: 53° 38' n, 11° 25' eexhibition area: 35 m2 participants: Years 5 and 6 Key element: energy revolution rug learning stations: 8

Heike Müller has been working as a project Manager for the Independent Institute for environmental Issues since 2009. She is supervising the interactive exhibition “Revolutionize energy together” on behalf of 50Hertz. the exciting exhibition, particularly suitable for children, makes a valuable contribution toshaping the future in terms of sustainability.


Good deeds across the entire grid area

taking social responsibility for a high quality of life today and a safe tomorrow is part of the mission statement of 50hertz. 50hertz introduces important stimuli for development in each region.

Wide-ranging commitment to the regionan example: 50hertz invested around 250 million euros in the southwestern interconnector. 10 to 15 percent of the investment amount is related to earthworks and foundation works, forestrywork and projects in agriculture and civil and hydraulic engineering. thuringian companies are the main beneficiaries. measures are implemented to compensate for any impact on natural areas. these measures are also gen-erally executed by regional companies. 50hertz also main-tains a range of partnerships with universities and research institutes in thuringia in order to support young scientists. this is ideal for developing creative ideas relating to the grid expansion and putting these into action. the ecological management of overhead lines is only one example of this.

in addition to the statutory measures, 50hertz also supports various outstanding and unique projects. these benefit the diversity of the cultural landscape as well as the protection of nature or social concerns. 50hertz is particularly com-mitted to supporting children and young people with their forward-looking ideas and projects.

Wind forces you can touchinspiring young people to become involved in natural sci-ence topics is important for 50hertz. 50hertz was the main sponsor of the special “Windstärken” [Wind Speeds] exhibi-tion at the german museum of technology in Berlin. the exhibition made the topic of wind and its energy a tangible experience for children and young people. 50hertz places great emphasis on new solutions for a climate-friendly, secure as well as efficient energy supply. 50hertz is also a gold partner of the german environment and media award “greentec awards 2013”. in this capacity, 50hertz has

contributed to promoting the use of sustainable environ-mental technologies and establishing a platform for the exchange of ideas. at the awards ceremony in Berlin, Boris Schucht, chairman of the Board of directors, pre-sented the award for the “energy” category together with celebrity chef Sarah Wiener. Peter altmaier, Federal minis-ter for the environment, nature conservation and nuclear Safety, is the new patron for the greentec awards.

the energy revolution as an interactive exhibitionthe united nations proclaimed the years between 2005 and 2014 the global decade of “education for sustainable devel-opment”. in this context, 50hertz, together with the inde-

Did you know:50Hertz supplies electricity to over 18 mil-

lion people. Furthermore, 50Hertz has a

committment to society that goes well

beyond the mandatory statutory require-

ments. Besides its commitment to the en-

vironment and social concerns, 50Hertz

is also focussed on responsible political

communication and transparent public

relations.

eeG levy for 2014 amounts to 6.240 cents per kilowatt-hour (ct/kWh)

the four german transmission system operators published the forecasts of the

expected input from renewable power-generation plants for 2014 in accordance

with the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable energy act]

as well as the resulting eeg levy for 2014.

Brandenburg premier a guest at the transmission Control Centre (tCC)

Brandenburg Premier dr. dietmar Woidke visited the 50hertz control centre.

after a guide through the tcc and insights into the system operation, he dis-

cussed the energy policy challenges faced by the new government together

with the 50hertz Board of directors Boris Schucht and dr. dirk Biermann.

15 October 2013 23 October 2013

gOOd deedS acrOSS the entire grid area AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 54

Fifth eeG Conference held by 50Hertz for political discussions on the eeG

50hertz hosted the 5th eeg conference. the approx. 300 participants discussed the current trends

and challenges, especially the secure and cost-efficient integration of renewables, in light of the political

debates on the energy revolution and the planned reform of the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”:

german renewable energy act] in 2014.

25 October 2013


pendent institute for environmental issues (ufu), developed the interactive exhibition “energie gemeinsam wenden” [“revolutionize energy together”]. and with great success: it was distinguished by the german uneScO commission as the project of the un “education for sustainable devel-opment” decade. this recognised the interactive exhibition as a contribution to the “Sustainable learning” alliance. the interactive exhibition displays the challenges of the “energy revolution” to years 5 and 6. it explains what it means to increasingly convert a country’s electricity supply to more and more renewable energy sources, the role played by grids and that this is a process with many stakeholders. the “energy revolution rug” allowed the students to symbolically change the energy supply landscape during the exhibition. the “Wendepunkt” [turning point] exhibition area used text and images to present various aspects of the energy revolu-tion and led through eight learning stations. it gave students the opportunity to participate in actions, games and experi-ments on different topics related to the energy revolution.

Music by talented international musicians at the Berlin Concert Hall50hertz supports the “artist in residence” program series at the Berlin concert hall. the concert hall and its orches-tra are one of the best places for classical music in Berlin, which uses innovative formats to make classical music more accessible to a wider public, including children and young people. Outstanding conductors and soloists as well as renowned ensembles from around the world provide the impetus for the performance calendar. the “artist in residence” program series is particularly important in this respect. each season, it focuses on an artist who is then presented to the public in a range of concerts and extraor-dinary projects. the best part: these musicians also have the opportunity to design unusual and innovative concert formats. the “artist in residence” for the 2012/2013 season was the young star violinist Julia Fischer. in the 2013/2014 season, the violin virtuoso nikolaj Znaider is the “artist in

residence” for the Berlin concert hall orchestra and is pre- senting his diversity as a soloist, conductor and chamber musician.

A real crowd puller in the region: the Mecklenburg-Western pomerania festivalduring the summer months, numerous events are held in the state of mecklenburg-Western Pomerania as part of the mecklenburg-Western Pomerania festival. 50hertz continued to support the festival season in 2013 as a concert sponsor. 50hertz is dedicated to supporting art in the region as well as promoting young up-and-coming artists and contributes to the enrichment of cultural life and to mecklenburg-Western Pomerania’s touristic pulling power.

50Hertz – Ready, set, go! 50hertz is supporting the rennsteig autumn run for the third year in a row. this cross-country run on the first section of the rennsteig marathon route leads through 20.5 kilometres of beautiful nature from neuhaus to masserberg. numerous running enthusiasts at 50hertz also headed to the start line. in thuringia, 50hertz also supports the vB Suhl e. v. women’s volleyball juniors, and young biathletes at the Schorfheide sports club in the southern uckermark region of Brandenburg also benefit from an ongoing partnership with 50hertz. 50hertz helps the young “biathinos” learn the nordic winter sport on their way to the top.

transmission system operators publish medium-term eeG forecast and forecast for the eeG levy rates in 2015

in the publication for the input from renewable-electricity-generating plants in accordance with the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-

gesetz”: german renewable energy act], the four german transmission system operators (tSO) provided their forecasts for the

trend over the next five years.

15 november 2013

gOOd deedS acrOSS the entire grid area AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 56

50Hertz It awarded 4th place in the “CIo of the Year” award

50hertz’s head of it, dominik Spannheimer, was ranked fourth in the “ciO of the year” 2013 award

in the medium-sized enterprise category. “computerwoche” and “ciO-magazin” honoured the best

chief information Officer (ciO) in germany in various categories in munich for the eleventh time.

21 november 2013

6.42 p.m.location: Sports fieldCoordinates: 52° 30' n, 13° 26' eAmbient temperature: -10 °CHeartbeats per minute: 140Speed: 7 km/hDistance to the goal: 100 m

Secretary Martina Zobel, trainee Christian Schulz (middle run- ner) and consultant in the Accounting/Asset Accounting, Benja-min Zimmermann don’t just distinguish themselves with strong performances at work, this also continues during their leisure time. At the Rennsteig autumn run 2013, Martina Zobel ranked first in her age category (time 02:09:09) and Christian Schulz in the 50Hertz running team placed second overall (time 01:37:10).


With over 820 employees, 50hertz has not only established the foundation for the implementation of its investment program, but increasingly demanding challenges must continue to be overcome at the highest level, such as the eeg imple-mentation, customer management and system operation. One focus is on establishing an attractive working environ-ment for highly qualified and committed individuals. in 2013, 50hertz also made active preparations for the demographic shift.

to strengthen the competencies in project management for the investment program, 50hertz has developed a new organizational structure for the regional centres. a new re-gional centre in hamburg, suitable organisational structures, processes and responsibilities will create the right framework conditions. For example, new teams at each of the seven locations bundle management and project coordination.

Searching for the best in 2013 50hertz updated its recruiting and selection proces-ses and created so-called tandem positions as part of its succession planning measures in order to secure knowledge at critical points for the future. considerably more appren-tices and trainees started in 2013 in order to be able to re- place experienced employees in the future. For the first time 2 Kia students (training and diploma as an engineer in five years) started at the company, where all trainees spend time in foreign posts (Belgium and denmark). 50hertz also started an employee participation scheme for the first time in 2013. the aim is to strengthen the identification with the elia group as well as recognizing very good work results in the challenging year of 2013.

“Fair Company” for fair career opportunities50hertz is a member of the “Fair company” initiative. this initiative was introduced in 2004 by the handelsblatt Publi- shing group’s job and business magazine “Karriere”. 50hertz is committed to providing fair working conditions for trainees.

50hertz has revised its annual employee review meeting in order to identify strengths and areas of development at an early stage. it is now more heavily focussed on the specific “on and off the job” development steps, is aligned to the competence model introduced in 2012 and has been anchored in a company agreement for all employees. Furthermore, in 2013, three new international development programs were introduced at the elia group level (ideg – for “international development @ elia group”). each of these provide customized development modules and pro-jects from everyday business for a specific target group.

Worker participation50hertz fosters a trusting and constructive cooperation with all employee-participation committees. at 50hertz, the Works council is responsible for internal worker participa-tion. the director of labour relations and the Supervisory Board, with equal representation, represent the company’s employees. throughout the company, the trade union represents the interests of employees in the industry – such as for collective bargaining. the german industrial mining, chemi-cal and energy union (ig Bce) trade union takes over these activities for 50hertz.

preventing and fighting corruption50hertz is committed to fighting and preventing corruption. 50hertz has appointed an external ombudsman as an inde-pendent contact partner for all individuals who wish to express their concerns regarding suspected corruption or any other similar legal violation. the ombudsman is an independent law-yer, subject to the duty of non-disclosure, who only forwards information to the company with the approval of the informant. the ombudsman is a contact partner for employees, contrac-tors or third parties.

Sustainable cooperation with research and science 50hertz is committed to continuing its close cooperation with colleges and universities in the future. this is of critical

The most important resource: qualified and committed personnel

union and SpD agree on a coalition agreement

cdu/cSu and SPd representatives agreed to a coalition agreement with a range of key

energy-policy projects: the eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable

energy act] is due to be reformed by the summer of 2014, followed by the development

of a system of grid-user charges as well as the introduction of a capacity mechanism.

27 november 2013

the mOSt imPOrtant reSOurce: QualiFied and cOmmitted PerSOnnel AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 60

Wind input record in the 50Hertz area

On this day, a maximum simultaneous input from

wind-power plants of 11,064 megawatts (mW)

was achieved.

50Hertz and the Velten 1st secondary school

conclude a cooperation agreement

velten’s mayor, ines hübner, and Principal herbert gorr sign a cooperation

agreement with 50hertz. the school maintains a nature path along the

380-kv Berlin north ring route and would like to be involved in the com-

pensation and substitution measures for the western construction section.

6 december 2013 6 december 2013


importance for managing the dynamic challenges involved in transmission-system activities in light of the energy revolu-tion. 50hertz has maintained a scientific network for several years in order to promote the exchange of knowledge and draw attention to research and development topics. 50hertz also provides traineeship positions, supports the preparation of theses and offers positions to students. Partners include the university of rostock, the dresden university of technol-ogy, the ilmenau university of technology, the Otto-von-gu-ericke university magdeburg, the Brandenburg university of technology cottbus-Senftenberg and the Friedrich-Schiller university Jena. 50hertz has arranged a scientific advisory body for energy infrastructures for several years. its mem-

bers are professors who have distinguished themselves with their outstanding knowledge in their field. their expertise benefits the electricity grids, high-voltage technology and energy and regulation law.

50hertz and the ilmenau university of technology signed a comprehensive framework agreement for research and de-velopment services in the energy sector on 22 august 2013. this contract allows both partners to extend their existing cooperation which has already lasted almost ten years. a cooperation agreement previously only existed between the institute for electrical energy and control technology at the ilmenau university of technology and 50hertz. the new contract will allow future cooperation to be expanded to the entire ilmenau university of technology as well as compa-nies that are affiliated with 50hertz. at the same time, the cooperation is turning its focus to a new project: Joint activi-ties by 50hertz and the ilmenau university of technology on the technical requirements of the planned high-voltage direct-current connection from the halle/Saale region to meitingen in the augsburg region (“south-east direct- current passage”).

50hertz worked on five studies as part of university coop-erations with the objective of analysing and evaluating the topics relevant for managing electrical systems such as voltage quality in high-voltage grids, the determination of measures for critical conditions in the 50hertz grid as well as system management 2030. 50hertz also hosted an innova-tion Forum for its employees in order to provide information on the topics of innovation management. occupational health and safety in the best possible hands Occupational health and safety are an important component of the corporate culture at 50hertz. they help to establish adequate conditions for the promotion of physical and men-tal health. every employee receives regular instruction on

Did you know:50Hertz is the industry winner in the medi-

um-sized enterprise group in the FoCuS

employer ranking 2014. In a study, the ma-

gazine, together with Xing, asked almost

20,000 employees how satisfied they were

with their employer. In total, 2,000 compa-

nies with at least 500 employees were

assessed for the ranking.

50Hertz applies for offshore grid connections

50hertz submits an application to the ministry for energy for the state of mecklenburg-

Western Pomerania as well as to the Federal maritime and hydrographic agency for the

construction and operation of six submarine cable systems to connect the planned Westlich

adlergrund and arkona See wind-farm clusters northeast of the isle of rügen to the grid.

17 december 2013

occupational health and safety. in 2013 50hertz’s occupational health and safety management system was successfully certified in accordance with the OhSaS 18001: 2007 (Occupational health and Safety assessment Series, international standard for the certification of occupational health and safety in companies). 50hertz also provides driver-safety training in cooperation with adac [german automobile association]. 50hertz has concluded new contracts with the maritime rescue coordination centre (mrcc) in Bremen (emergency control centre for the north and Baltic Sea) and drF luftrettung (air rescue service). 50hertz, together with the drF luftrettung, has provided a specially equipped rescue helicopter for use out at sea since 1 October. On board are two helicopter pilots, one winch operator and one emergency physician. a team is on standby for emergency call-outs around the clock, 365 days a year. this significantly improves safety for employees in the german Baltic Sea. the helicopter is stationed in güttin on the isle of rügen. this improves the rescue chain for the individuals involved in developing offshore wind energy. the helicopter was officially commissioned on 7 October 2013 – in the presence of State Secretary ina-maria ulbrich from the ministry for energy, infrastructure and regional development for mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. this enabled 50hertz to optimise the rescue concept for the offshore area.

Sport and fitnessJoint sports activities have a long tradition at 50hertz. the 50hertz company sports club (BSv veag) currently has 176 members divided across the nine sports of badmin-ton, bowls, football, gymnastics, bowling, running, cycling, mountain biking and volleyball. 50hertz congratulated the club on its 20th anniversary in 2013. the club was founded on 14 may 1993 as a company sports club of the vereinigten energiewerke ag (veag) with its head office in Berlin. Other sports groups exist in the regional centres. the 50hertz cyclists travelled to the French alps for the second time at the invitation of elia in order to participate in the benefit

race for asthma and mucoviscidosis on the col du galibier under the motto “climbing for life”. this is the third year in a row that elia has supported this event. 50hertz athletes also participated in the sixth edition of the Berlin road cycling race “velothon” in June. in addition, a 50hertz running team braved the drizzle and visibility of below 50 metres to partici-pate in the rennsteig autumn run half marathon which has a rich tradition. 50hertz supported the rennsteig autumn run in the thuringian Forest as a partner for the third time.

every year, 50hertz also hosts a sport and fitness day for its employees and their families. Our colleagues from Belgium once again participated in the event in 2013. at a sports ground in Strausberg, near Berlin, the program included activities such as football, bowling, volleyball and the fun-sport Olympics.

the mOSt imPOrtant reSOurce: QualiFied and cOmmitted PerSOnnel AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 62

50Hertz purchases shares in the electricity exchange

at the start of may 2013, 50hertz acquired 1.75 percent of the shares in the

european energy exchange ag (eeX) in leipzig, with a further 0.5 percent

in december 2013, with a total share in the eeX on 31 december 2013 of

2.25 percent and a share value of 5.4 million euros.

may, december 2013

Management report and financial statements of 50Hertz Transmission GmbH

Management report 65

Financial statements 83

Statement of financial position 83

Income statement 85

Cash flow statement 86

Statement of changes in fixed assets 87

Notes to the financial statements 89

Company boards 105

Auditor’s report 106


Purpose of the Company

50hertz is the term used jointly for 50hertz transmission gmbh (50hertz transmission) and 50hertz Offshore gmbh (50hertz Offshore); both companies are affiliates of eurogrid gmbh (eurogrid), Berlin. transmission system operator elia System Operator Sa/nv (elia), Brussels, Belgium, and in-frastructure fund industry Funds management luxembourg no. 2 S.à.r.l., luxembourg, luxembourg, indirectly hold a shareholding in eurogrid via eurogrid international cvBa/Scrl, Brussels, Belgium.

50hertz is one of four operators of transmission systems for electrical energy operating in germany with responsibility for the extra-high-voltage grid.

as transmission system operator, 50hertz operates an extra-high-voltage grid that spans northern and eastern german at voltage levels of 150 kilovolts (kv), 220 kv and 380 kv with a network grid length of around 10,000 km. 50hertz’s customers and partners are distribution grid oper-

ators based in the balancing zone whose plants are directly connected to the transmission grid, operators of power sta-tions connected to the transmission grid, pumped storage plants, wind farms, major industrial consumers, transit and balancing group customers as well as business partners governed by the laws eeg [“erneuerbare-energien-gesetz”: german renewable energy act] and KWKg [“Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungsgesetz”: german combined heat and Power act].

as transmission system operator responsible for the balanc-ing zone, 50hertz is responsible for its secure, reliable, efficient and environmentally friendly operation, maintenance and need-based expansion as well as for maintaining the balance of generation and consumption within the balanc-ing zone’s whole electricity-generation system. Since 2012, 50hertz is the only german transmission system operator to have been certified as a fully unbundled grid operator in terms of ownership law by the Federal network agency.

Overall economic and industry-related conditions

economic and political environmentthe downward trend in general economic development in germany was halted over the course of 2013 as the overall economic situation stabilized. Following a period of stagna-tion of the gross domestic product (gdP) at the beginning of the year – caused also by the cold weather – the economy picked up moderately. Positive growth rates in the second and third quarter of 2013 led to a price-adjusted increase in gdP on the prior year of 0.4%, or 0.5% adjusted for seasonal effects. this was primarily attributable to increased consumer spending by both public bodies and private households, while capital expenditures – adjusted for price effects – were down. net exports had a negative impact on gdP. this was caused by a slowdown in exports while imports increased at a greater rate by comparison.

the economic outlook for 2014 is viewed optimistically, which is why the federal government in its fall outlook forecast a price-adjusted increase in gdP of 1.7% in comparison to the figures forecast for 2013.

electricity consumption in 2013 decreased by 1.8% on the prior year, while the arbeitsgemeinschaft energiebilanzen e. v. (working group on energy balances) had predicted a year-on-year increase in total energy consumption in germany of 2.6% for 2013. the most important cause for this is deemed to be the increased demand for heat energy as a result of the long winter and cool spring. in terms of electricity gen-eration, renewable energies again increased by just under 6% on the prior year. While hydropower and wind power across germany recorded a decrease of 2.5% and 2% in

Management report

2013, respectively, photovoltaic and biomass increased their share of electricity generation by 7% and 11%, respectively.

the development of the economy as a whole as well as electricity consumption did not have any significant influence on 50hertz’s earnings.

the political environment of the transmission system opera-tors in the 2013 fiscal year was primarily shaped by the gen-eral elections in September. Part of the election campaign concerned the costs of the new energy concept in germany and in particular the costs of promoting renewable energies. negotiations between federal and state governments failed to reach an agreement before the election on an electric-ity price freeze as suggested by the federal government. after the election, the new governing coalition agreed in its coalition agreement on a prompt reform of the eeg, the introduction in the medium term of a cost-efficient capacity mechanism that is competitive and open to all technologies at a european level, a reliable expansion plan for renew-able energies onshore and offshore, measures to ensure system security, further development of the network user charge system and measures to increase energy efficiency. the further expansion in renewable energies is to be better synchronized with grid expansion.

Regulatory framework for the energy industryeuropean lawOn a european level, several legal measures came into force in 2013 or are still at the implementation stage, which are expected to aid the creation of a uniform single market by increasing market transparency and further expanding the infrastructure.

to implement the european union (eu) regulation no. 648/ 2012 on Otc (over-the-counter) derivatives, central counter-parties and trade repositories, also known as emir (europe-an market infrastructure regulation), several implementing acts as well as national implementation acts were issued.

in 2013, the european commission initiated proceedings in the energy sector against the Federal republic of germany. Firstly, a formal government aid investigation was opened

in march regarding the exemption of electricity-intensive industries from network user charges. however, these proceedings were superseded by legislative and judicial developments in germany; a decision has therefore not yet been made.

Secondly, the european commission began reviewing the compatibility of relief granted to energy-intensive industry companies in the eeg with the single market as part of a formal eu government aid investigation in december 2013.

By a ruling of the european court of Justice, the german environment information law was rejected as not compat-ible with higher-ranking law. although the law does not apply until it has been amended accordingly, the rights to informa-tion of environmental protection and nature conservation associations were reinforced as a result of this amendment having to be made.

national law in 2013, national law as well as established case law contin-ued to be shaped by the implementation of the new energy concept in germany which has picked up pace since its launch in 2011. in addition to legislative activities, several court rulings have also brought about significant changes to the legal framework in the field of the energy industry.

the enWg amended at the end of 2012 regulated liability for any delays and interruptions when establishing offshore grid connections. in such cases, the offshore wind farm affected receives compensation from the transmission system opera-tor, which can then pass on the costs incurred to the grid users via a newly introduced offshore liability cost allocation, provided the transmission system operator has not acted with willful intent. While the amount of the first offshore liabil-ity cost allocation for 2013 was still prescribed by law, the amount of this cost allocation for 2014 was determined by the transmission system operators for the first time based on forecast compensation payments. the cost allocation for 2014 was disclosed as of 15 October 2013 and set at a maximum value of 0.25 cents per kilowatt-hour (ct/kWh) for the largest end-consumer group.

management rePOrt OF 50hertZ tranSmiSSiOn gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 66


there were changes to the regulatory framework as a result of amendments made to the Stromnev [“Stromnetzentgelt- verordnung”: Ordinance on electricity network user charg-es] stemming from earlier court rulings. Firstly, the index se-ries to be used to determine the current value are stipulated for the first time. Secondly, it sets the interest rate at which the share of equity is charged exceeding the regulatory equity ratio of 40% (equity ii).

the legal framework for the utilization of interruptible loads by transmission system operators was further defined as of 1 January 2013 after the implementation of the regulation on agreements on interruptible loads.

the resKv [“reservekraftwerksverordnung”: german regulation on reserve Power Plants], which came into force in July 2013, also further specifies the provisions on supply reliability created by amending the enWg.

two rulings of the düsseldorf higher regional court proved significant in the indirect economic effects they had for 50hertz. in march 2013, the court declared the network user charge exemptions under Sec. 19 (2) Stromnev as well as the cost allocation to distribute losses in income among the grid operators to be unlawful. however, these decisions made by the düsseldorf higher regional court have not be-come final and absolute as operators including 50hertz have filed an application for judicial review with the Federal court of Justice. moreover, the regulatory authority reacted by amending the Stromnev to no longer allow exemption from network user charges but instead to only allow for reduced network user charges upon fulfilling certain requirements.

in July 2013, the first Federal requirements Plan act was announced based on the first german grid development plan prepared in 2012. this completed the new legal frame-work for the planning and approval of large line-construction projects in place since the end of 2012, which contains 36 specific projects in the extra-high-voltage grid setting out the necessity and priority needs for the energy sector. however, constitutional complaints were lodged at the Federal consti-tutional court against the Federal requirements Plan act; a decision has yet to be made.

to the benefit of 50hertz, the Federal court of Justice rejected the administrative practice of the Federal network agency as well as the corresponding legal precedents of the düsseldorf higher regional court on the grounds that measures to retrofit secondary technology may not from the outset be permissible as investment measures in accord-ance with Sec. 23 aregv [“anreizregulierungsverordnung”: incentive regulation Ordinance]. the Federal network agen-cy as well the düsseldorf higher regional court had always maintained that this only concerned replacement measures and not restructuring measures. the reasons for the Federal court of Justice’s decision, which are still outstanding, will affect further pending cases of 50hertz as well as the ap-proval of future investment measures.

the court ruling of Berlin regional court from august 2013 meant a decision was made for the first time on the liability of a transmission system operator when connecting offshore wind farms. the court rejected the action against 50hertz and ruled that the offshore wind farm operator enBW Baltic 1 had no claim to damages for default. in 2013, the Federal administrative court (Bverwg) also made a decision on the second southwest connecting line and rejected all actions against the planning approval decision.

Further development in regulatory legislation was largely shaped by court rulings in 2013. the düsseldorf higher re-gional court, for instance, ruled in april 2013 that the formula used by the regulatory authorities to calculate the equity interest rate before taxes was flawed. adjusting the formula increased the equity interest rates for new and existing plants. the düsseldorf higher regional court also declared the Federal network agency calculating capital and operat-ing costs resulting from approved investment measures to be unlawful in some respects. however, an application for judicial review has been filed, meaning that the existing ad-ministrative practice will for the time being be continued for the second regulatory period. By contrast, the Federal court of Justice confirmed the practice of regulatory authorities in that trade tax pursuant to Stromnev is not an operating tax in line with the list of permanently uncontrollable costs and therefore the revenue caps are not to be adjusted upon changes in trade tax.

Grid development plansa core component of the grid development plan 2012, which initially only comprised the onshore grid development requirement, was transferred to the federal requirements planning. in 2013, 50hertz and the other german transmis-sion system operators also revised their planning activities and prepared the second national grid development plan of 2013 (neP 2013), as well as the first national offshore grid development plan of 2013 (O-neP 2013) based on input parameters for 2023 (looking towards 2033) broadly con-sulted and then determined by the Federal network agency.

the package of measures developed by the transmission system operators in the grid development plan 2013 was submitted following consultation for confirmation to the Fed-eral network agency as a concept for a stable and bottle-neck-free electricity supply in 2023 (looking towards 2033). the transmission system operators categorized the identi-fied grid expansion measures into priority and observed grid measures. the grid development plan 2013 was confirmed at the beginning of January 2014. during its review, the Fed-eral network agency went beyond the planning approach taken by the transmission system operators and, as in the grid development plan 2012, applied far-reaching criteria to assess the necessity and robustness of the measures so as to afford flexibility in expanding the grid in light of a changingenergy industry and policy environment. Of the 90 line measures in the grid development plan 2013 submitted

by the transmission system operators across germany, 20 relate to 50hertz’s balancing zone. two of these measures have already successfully completed the public-works plan-ning procedure or are under construction and do not require any further confirmation, while seven measures were not confirmed.

With the system change introduced by the amendment of the enWg, demand for connection capacities is stipulated in the offshore grid development plan. the offshore grid development plan is therefore the key tool for improved off-shore conditions. the scenario framework confirmed by the Federal network agency provides for a maximum expansion capacity of 1.3 gigawatts (gW) in “Scenario B 2023” for the Baltic Sea, whereas the forecasts and project applications at 50hertz expected an expansion capacity of 2.1 gW in this time frame. the offshore grid development plan takes the connections of the Baltic 1 and 2 offshore wind farms in the offshore starter grid into account and also provides for the connection of another cluster with four grid connection systems in “Scenario B 2023”. in parallel to the offshore grid development plan, 50hertz took part in the preparation of the Federal maritime and hydrographic agency’s offshore federal plan, which handles regional planning for offshore wind farms in the exclusive economic zone.

Business development

Grid usage and grid connection50hertz is currently processing seven applications in accordance with the Kraftnav [“Kraftwerks-netzanschlussver-ordnung”: Ordinance for regulating grid connections] for connecting conventional power stations and storage facilities to the transmission grid as well as a planned compressed air storage plant at Förderstedt (outside the scope of Kraftnav). the projects together have a gross nominal output of around 6,600 megawatts (mW), of which 50hertz has granted grid connection permits for approximately 5,000 mW.

Over the course of 2013, the grid connection application to 50hertz for the gas and steam turbine and biomass combined heat and power (chP) plant project with ap-proximately 330 mW at a location in Berlin was withdrawn; the project for this grid connection is now being exclusively pursued for the 110 kv distribution grid. application filed for an increase in output of around 40 mW was confirmed by 50hertz for a gas and steam turbine chP project in the state of Brandenburg. in addition, a grid connection applica-tion for a pumped storage power plant in thuringia with ap-



proximately 400 mW was submitted at year-end. as a result, the gross nominal output of conventional power plants and storage facilities for a network connection applied for from 50hertz only changed marginally in 2013 compared to the prior year. apart from the moorburg hard coal power station in hamburg that is about to start operations, construc-tion work is currently not scheduled to begin at any of the planned power stations and storage facilities.

With regard to the grid connection applications that fall under the eeg, there are still 21 applications for offshore wind farms, which now total approximately 6,400 mW as a result of an increase in output announced in 2013 (including competing applications). there are a total of six applications for onshore wind farms of up to 2,100 mW, bringing the output for applications to connect to 50hertz’s grid to ap-proximately 8,500 mW for offshore and onshore wind farms. On top of this, there are three applications for solar farms with a total output of around 300 mW and an application filed jointly with an onshore wind farm totaling 370 mW from photovoltaic and biomass power.

the preliminary network user charges 2014 published on 15 October 2013 showed a steady development compared to the 2013 prices. among other things, new pooling provisions were observed during pricing from the beginning of 2014. the final prices for 2014 correspond roughly to the preliminary network user charges. 50hertz’s grid customers were informed about this in december 2013.

Regulatory issuesthe revenue caps for 2013 were set with effect as of 1 Jan-uary 2013 in accordance with the provisions of the aregv. they were increased by around 26% on the prior year and form the basis of the price list valid since 1 January 2013. the increase is primarily attributable to catchup effects for cost increases in prior years as well as an increase in the expected redispatch costs as part of the voluntary commitment for system services. the increase in onshore and offshore investments also contributed greatly to this increase.

the revenue caps in effect from 1 January 2014 were also determined in accordance with the provisions of the aregv.

these revenue caps decreased slightly by 4% compared to the prior year, in particular due to lower energy costs.

By 31 december 2013, of the 99 active applications filed since 2008 for the approval of investment measures, 50hertz had received a total of 69 approvals. Based on the total application volume of eur 9.9b, an investment volume of eur 3.6b had been approved by the Federal network authority by the aforementioned date.

Grid provision and expansionthe provision and maintenance of 50hertz’s 66 own substa-tions and switching systems with its 153 transformers in operation, amounting to a total capacity of 44,030 meg-avolt-ampere (mva), comprises inspection, servicing and maintenance. the total capacity of transformers therefore increased by 880 mva or 2% compared to 2012. While ser-vicing and maintenance is largely performed by external per-sonnel, inspection and monitoring of the quality and safety of the services performed is secured by the company’s own staff. transformer capacity reserves are being increasingly determined by the input volume from the distribution grid level into the transmission grid, which is attributable to the growth in renewable energies.

the focus in fiscal year 2013 was again on carrying out con-struction activities and preparatory measures for strengthen-ing and expanding the grid. For the european priority project relating to the southwest interconnection line from halle (Saxony-anhalt) to Schweinfurt (Bavaria), the lawsuits of one municipality and several private individuals were pending in the main action for the second construction phase from vieselbach to altenfeld. the Federal administrative court re-jected these lawsuits in July 2013 and ruled that the planning approval decision by the Free State of thuringia is lawful. the construction work started in 2012 was continued as planned in 2013. the second construction phase is expect-ed to go into operation at the end of 2014. the public works planning procedure for the third construction phase of the southwest interconnection line from altenfeld to redwitz (in tennet tSO’s area), which will also continue to Schweinfurt, was opened in September 2013 for the phase that is under 50hertz’s responsibility up to the thuringian/Bavarian border.

the planning approval decision on the construction of the new 380 kv overhead line from Bärwalde to Schmölln along the existing route was issued in February 2013. the con-struction work was started immediately during operations. the first circuit of the new higher-performing double circuit line went into operation on 25 October 2013. together with the circuit of the current double circuit line, this resulted in improved conditions for the feed-in of power stations in lusatia in winter 2013/2014 until construction and assembly work continues in the coming year. the new line’s second circuit is expected to go into operation before the winter of 2014/2015.

the planning approval decision for the western section of the “nordring Berlin” [Berlin northern ring] (380-kv line) was issued in the third quarter of 2013.

in the Baltic Sea, plans are also underway to link the grid connection of the Kriegers Flak offshore wind farm with a cross-border line between germany and denmark. Preparatory work on the project has commenced.

in the Wolmirstedt transformer substation, the first construc-tion phase of the new 380 kv plant was completed and put into operation. the existing 220/110 kv transformation was replaced in full by the commissioning of two 380/110 kv transformers in June 2013. the construction and as-sembly work for the Förderstedt location, which will also be switched to 380/110 kv transformation in the future, started in 2013 after the necessary approvals were granted. Fur-thermore, the newly constructed 380 kv altentreptow/nord transformer substation for the connection of the Werder/Kessin onshore wind farm went into operation on 30 august 2013. in the Perleberg transformer substation, line connec-tions were converted and the first of two additional 380/110 kv transformers went into operation in november 2013 as part of the location’s expansion.

environmental protection is an extremely important factor in the use of technical plants. the safe interaction with water-polluting substances and technical gases, proper disposal of waste as well as nature conservation and pollution control place high demands on the planning, construction and

operation of plants. For this reason, such work included regularly controlling and modernizing the environmental equipment, implementing noise protection measures as well as compensatory and replacement measures to compensate for the invasion of nature and landscape. in 2013 for example, a large transformer was dismantled on site, properly disposed of and decontamination performed as part of the 380 kv expansion in the Schmölln transformer substation. in the hamburg plants, additional security systems such as large separators and oil lines were inspected, retro-fitted and modernized. using high-performance contingency and damage concepts, the impact of events relating to the environment can be contained and eliminated as quickly as possible.

the high level of environmental protection is ensured on the one hand by active environment management and on the other hand by the constant training and sensitization of the company’s employees. in this context, regular environ-mental consulting was available for employees in 2013 and the further education of environmental officers through e.g., external training. employees in regional centers were trained on topics such as waste disposal and transport of danger-ous goods by means of activity-based instruction.

System managementas of 31 december 2013, 50hertz’s balancing zone con-tained onshore wind turbines with a total installed output of 13,430 mW. this corresponds to approximately 40% of germany’s installed capacity and an increase of just under 9% compared to 31 december 2012. the installed output of offshore wind turbines in the Baltic Sea continues to stand at around 50 mW. the photovoltaic output installed within the balancing zone increased by approximately 5% in comparison to the end of 2012 and now stands at around 7,600 mW.

the maximum simultaneous feed-in from wind turbines of 11,064 mW and from photovoltaic plants (Pv plants) of 5,346 mW was achieved on 6 december 2013 and 5 June 2013, respectively. the maximum amount fed into 50hertz’s transmission grid – registered on 4 January 2013 – came to 15,961 mW (instantaneous one-minute value).



to avoid the failure-related overloading of grid elements within the transmission grid, it was necessary at the begin-ning of 2013 to take measures on 220 days in accordance with Sec. 13 enWg (thereof on 142 days with a reduction in output generated by renewable energies). this resulted in a redispatch amount of 2,051 gigawatt-hours (gWh) and a reduced eeg energy offering of 138 gWh. the situation in 50hertz’s balancing zone continued to be marked by increased load flows from north to south and east to west in 2013.

One particular challenge for system management was posed by the effects of hurricane Xaver on 5 and 6 december 2013. to take control of the situation, it was necessary to implement extensive redispatch measures with conventional power plants and, to a lesser degree, reduce the output of wind turbines. more than 50 cases of electricity lines and additional grid elements tripping on account of the weather were recorded, although these were quickly powered on again.

Following evaluation of the winter 2012/2013, 50hertz together with the other german transmission system opera-tors prepared for winter 2013/2014 by carrying out exten-sive investigations mainly as part of the implementation of the resKv [“reservekraftwerksverordnung”: german regulation on reserve Power Plants]. in this context, the necessity was identified to maintain reserve power plant output of around 2,500 mW to cover redispatch measures in southern germany taking into account (n–1) outages in the transmission grid for winter 2013/2014. this output was fixed contractually by the transmission system operators.

energy managementBalancing group management50hertz invoices all balancing groups in its balancing zone on a monthly basis, including its own balancing groups. as of the end of 2013, there were 1,367 balancing groups for 495 of the traders, electricity distributors and grid operators operating in the balancing zone.

eeG settlementin the fiscal year 2013, the supply of eeg electricity within

50hertz’s balancing zone increased by approximately 7% in comparison to the prior year. in 2013, the share of direct marketing increased again on 2012, reporting growth of around 30%. Overall, only around 32% of eeg electricity output in 50hertz’s balancing zone was sold by the trans-mission system operator. as of year-end 2013, around 85% of onshore wind turbines and the entire offshore wind gen-eration was sold directly using the market premium model, also causing electricity volumes exchanged between the transmission system operators in the horizontal equalization of burdens to fall further.

the average price on the electricity exchange, which continued to fall sharply and which could not be taken into ac-count in the calculation for the eeg cost allocation, was one of the main reasons why the eeg cost allocation was again not sufficient in 2013 to fully cover the costs of feed- in compensation and the market premium payments to plant operators. taking into account the maximum liquid-ity reserve as permitted by law when calculating the cost allocation for 2013 proved to be justified. however, it was unable to prevent a deficit in the eeg cost allocation in 2013 peaking at eur 2.3b, of which eur 460m was attributable to 50hertz. Overall, 2013 was shaped by cash inflows due to the eeg cost allocation in such a way that avoided a continuous deficit over a protracted period.

the calculation for 2014 again used the maximum liquidity reserve as permitted by law. considering the account deficit on 30 September 2013, an eeg cost allocation of 6.24 ct/kWh was calculated and published.

other cost allocations in the energy industryin addition to the KWKg cost allocation and the cost alloca-tion pursuant to Sec. 19 (2) Stromnev, the offshore liability cost allocation was levied for the first time in 2013 via the grid operators.

Grid losses, voltage control and operating consumption50hertz covers the energy it needs to cover grid losses in the long term as part of a risk-averse procurement strategy. in 2013, the long-term need for 2014 of 2.1 terawatt-hours

(tWh) was procured. the procurement of long-term components for 2015 and 2016 was also largely concluded. in 2013, a total of 2.1 tWh and 2.2 tWh was secured for 2015 and 2016, respectively.

in 2013, the realignment of the contractual provisions with power plants connected to the 50hertz grid was concluded as a way of providing reactive power. voltage control agree-ments have now been concluded with all power plant operators. these are in line with market criteria and ensure a reliable provision of reactive power by the power plants.

as part of an operating efficiency program, work began in 2013 to combine and optimize the partly individual procure-ment of operating consumption for the substations and locations of 50hertz by implementing uniform regulations. measures introduced in this regard will be concluded in the course of 2014. as part of this process, in 2013 it was decided to introduce an energy management system and work was begun.

International and national cooperation with the trans-mission system operatorsOperations of the internal grid control cooperation (igcc) were performed incident-free and made a significant con-tribution towards the integration and increased efficiency of the balancing energy markets in europe by avoiding any op-posing requests for balancing energy in the balancing zone between Belgium, denmark, the netherlands, Switzerland, the czech republic and germany. the igcc was officially recognized as the cross-border pilot project on electricity balancing of the european network of transmission Sys- tem Operators – electricity and a grid bottleneck module was added allowing available transmission capacities to be used better.

the cooperation with tennet tSO, which has been in place for several years now, was also successfully continued in 2013. in addition to providing market entry, additional co-operation opportunities were also examined: one example is tennet tSO and 50hertz attempting together to include direct marketers of eeg plants in the redispatch processes.

Cross-border load flows and regional initiativescontinuing the activities introduced by 50hertz in 2012 to tackle the increasing volume of unplanned load flows across transnational borders and their influence on ensuring secure system management, 50hertz and the Polish transmission system operator Polskie Sieci elektroenergetyczne S.a. (PSe) piloted a “virtual phase shifter” between January and april 2013. this involved applying a response mechanism into how power plants are run under defined conditions and coordinated across borders in order to avoid overload-ing lines and threatening system operations. although the effectiveness of this procedure was proven, it confirmed the necessity of erecting physical phase shifters. as of year-end 2013, negotiations on an agreement with PSe concern-ing the coordinated erection and operation of such phase shifters on the german-Polish border as well as the use of a virtual phase shifter in the meantime were in the final stages.

Furthermore, with regard to the cross-border line to the czech transmission system operator cePS a.s., a techni-cal solution was agreed for erecting phase shifters on both sides of the border. this is to be supplemented by regula-tions on the coordinated use of the equipment.

in 2013, a portion of transmission capacities were auctioned off for the first time as annual capacity for 2014 on the cross-border direct-current connection to eastern denmark (high-voltage direct-current transmission KOnteK) at the request of market participators and regulators. the majority of capacities continue to be available for daily auctions as well as monthly auctions.

50hertz is involved in the development of electricity mar-kets in various european regions. in northwestern europe, further progress was made in 2013 on preparations for the introduction of load flow-based market coupling procedures, especially for awarding bottlenecks capacities the day ahead. they are expected to be implemented in 2014. in the region of central eastern europe, work on a load flow-based market coupling procedure was recommenced. this work will be continued in 2014 under close cooperation with the region’s electricity exchanges. in 2013, 50hertz assumed



the role of coordinator between the eight transmission system operators affected.

employeesthe number of employees at 50hertz transmission increased from 720 to 779 as of 31 december 2012, a rise of 8% compared to the prior year. new jobs were mostly created in the technical areas and support the high investment program. at the same time, the number of temporary workers hired was further reduced through targeted insourcing measures.

to prepare for the large number of employees expected to enter retirement in the coming years, the number of trainees was increased and totaled 24 at year-end.

50hertz offered its employees the chance to participate in the successes of the fiscal year 2012 in the form of a stock program and so provided each employee with ten elia shares free of charge in 2013. this offer was exercised by 92% of the eligible employees.

Health and industrial safetythe primary aim is to shape conditions at the workplace or in the working environment in such a way that they ful- fill the employees’ health and safety requirements at all times. 50hertz’s health and industrial safety management system was successfully certified according to the “Occu- pational health and Safety assessment Series 18001: 2007” in 2013. the rescue concept for offshore activities was improved by entering into agreements with the “mari-time rescue coordination centre” in Bremen for the north Sea and the Baltic Sea and the german air rescue service drF rettungsflug.

in 2013, there were six reportable work-related accidents, three accidents while traveling on business and ten com-muting accidents. none of these accidents resulted in serious injury.

It securitythere were no it-related security incidents with a material influence on 50hertz’s business processes in 2013. the creation of a comprehensive it security structure that

began in the past year was systematically continued in 2013. an it security program to set up an it security management system for 50hertz was prepared and its implementation kicked off.

Research and developmentin the course of the grid expansion, 50hertz reviews and develops technologies to make better use of routes, to improve public acceptance of overhead-line projects as well as to support system reliability. For example, a project to develop space-optimized overhead lines was launched in 2013 and is being subsidized by the german Federal ministry of economics and technology for a term of five years. Overall, around eur 1m was spent on research and development projects in 2013.

50hertz transmission’s absolute income and expenses are largely characterized by the settlement not through profit or loss of the eeg and additional cost allocations. the transmission system operators sell the renewable electricity fed in by upstream grid operators and directly connected producers to an electricity exchange. in addition to this sales revenue, the transmission system operators levy a charge for all trading and distribution companies operating in the balancing zone to cover the difference between the costs for the reimbursement of electricity generated from renewable sources and the revenue from selling the electricity gener-ated from renewable sources. the settlement of the eeg and the KWKg generated revenue of eur 6,284.1m (prior year: eur 6,343.8m).

under revenue and cost of materials, the settlement volume of services rendered to third parties amounts to a share of eur 907.5m in each case (prior year: eur 1,113.4m).

under other income, eur 88.5m was attributable to the settlement of the KWKg (prior year: eur 76.2m). income of eur 225.4m (prior year: eur 176.9m) related to the allocation mechanism for reductions in charges granted to grid customers in accordance with Sec. 19 (2) Stromnev. income of eur 155.4m was generated for the first time in the fiscal year as a result of introducing a new nationwide allocation mechanism for delays and interruptions when establishing the grid connections as part of the reform of the enWg. the amount of the cost allocation for 2013 was prescribed by law. Part of the cost allocation was paid out for compensation in the fiscal year; the rest is transferred to general liquidity and will be deducted from future cost allocations with a time delay of two years.

Overall, income and expenses from the individual allocation mechanisms are recognized directly in equity for 50hertz.

Income statement 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013 eur m

1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012 eur m

Changeeur m

cost-matching income 7,191.6 7,457.2 – 265.6

Other cost-matching income 469.3 253.1 216.2

non-profit issues 7,660.9 7,710.3 –49.4

revenue from the grid business 936.4 894.8 41.6

Other income 66.0 58.7 7.3

expenses for the grid business – 543.8 – 537.2 – 6.6

Other expenses – 197.4 – 186.1 – 11.3

investment result/financial result 11.4 1.3 10.1

Result from ordinary activities 272.6 231.5 41.1

Economic situation of 50Hertz Transmission

the company operates exclusively in the field of electricity transmission as defined by Sec. 6b (3) enWg. For this rea-son, the separate activity-based financial statements to be prepared correspond to the company’s financial statements.


Results of operations


in the fiscal year, a total business volume of eur 7,660.9m (prior year: eur 7,710.3m) relates to the settlement of non-profit isses.

revenue from the grid business primarily related to in-creased network user charges (eur 988.9m; prior year: eur 713.7m), balancing group management (eur 52.8m; prior year: eur 79.8m) as well as system services (eur 31.4m; prior year: eur 50.3m). in addition, eur –140.4m (prior year: eur 44.6m) relates to effects from the compensation for network user charges in different periods, which are realized with a time delay as a result of the current regulatory framework.

expenses for the grid business mainly contain expenses for the procurement of electricity of eur 235.7m (prior year: eur 303.4m) and for system services of eur 251.1m (prior year: eur 177.6m).

Other expenses include personnel expenses of eur 68.9m (prior year: eur 62.8m). this increase compared to 2012 is due to a collectively bargained wage and salary adjust-ment from 2013 and also represents the constant growth in the number of employees. at eur 64.5m (prior year: eur 65.1m), amortization, depreciation and write-downs remained largely stable year-on-year.

the negative interest result as part of the financial result amounts to eur 6.7m (prior year: eur 15.3m). under investment result, 50hertz transmission generated income from the profit transfer from 50hertz Offshore of eur 18.1m (prior year: eur 16.9m). the interest result was influenced significantly less by negative one-off effects in the fiscal year 2013 than in the comparative period, which led overall to an improvement in the interest result.

the result from ordinary activities amounts to eur 272.6m (prior year: eur 231.5m). as in the prior year, this positive trend in earnings is mainly due to effects now occurring from the regulatory framework; this primarily relates to catch-up effects for prior years as well as the compensation for the further increase in investment activity. the positive effects were included in current income. as the

positive effects are primarily due to the elimination of the two-year delay compensating for incurred costs, the rela- tively lower results in past fiscal years also have to be con-sidered when interpreting the results. in addition, positive contributions to earnings resulted from the adjusted meas-urement of individual provisions as well as from efficiency improvements in operating expenses.

the latest estimate for tax risks for assessment periods before the consolidated tax group was formed with euro-grid resulted in a positive result from income taxes of eur 4.5m (prior year: eur –4.6m). the expense of other taxes amounts to eur 1.1m (prior year: eur 0.5m).

the company closed the fiscal year 2013 with a profit for the period (before profit transfer) of eur 276.0m (prior year: eur 226.4m), which will be transferred to eurogrid.

net assets and financial positionin addition to intangible assets of eur 39.0m (prior year: eur 38.0m), fixed assets primarily comprise 50hertz trans-mission’s technical grid systems of eur 1,135.4m (prior year: eur 1,084.2m), prepayments and assets under con-struction of eur 262.5m (prior year: eur 149.4m) as well as financial assets of eur 478.1m (prior year: eur 322.9m). the latter primarily relates to the investment in (eur 201.0m) as well as a loan (eur 271.3m) issued to 50hertz Offshore. in addition, securities classified as fixed assets of eur 5.4m from the acquisition of shares in european energy exchange ag (eeX) were recognized for the first time. For fiscal year 2013, additions to investments in property, plant and equip-ment amount to eur 244.6m (prior year: eur 139.1m). these mainly relate to the construction of a new transformer substation in altentreptow/nord, capacity increases of transformer substations in Wolmirstedt and Perleberg as well as the expansion of additional locations. Furthermore, a plot of land near Berlin main station was purchased for 50hertz’s future headquarters.

under current assets, eur 642.5m (prior year: eur 446.0m) relates to trade receivables. this reflects the high billing vol-umes attributable to the largely non-profit grid business also when considering the results of operations. the fall in other

Statement of financial position 31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

Changeeur m

Assets

Fixed assets 2,030.0 1,691.2 338.8

current assets (including prepaid expenses) 883.3 1,056.0 –172.7

2,913.3 2,747.2 166.1

equity and liabilities

equity 855.8 855.8 0.0

non-current liabilities 780.9 554.9 226.0

medium and current liabilities 1,276.6 1,336.5 – 59.9

2,913.3 2,747.2 166.1

assets to eur 98.2m (prior year: eur 595.4m) is mainly attributable to the decline in compensation claims stemming from the eeg settlement process as well as to the applica-tion of the reverse-charge process on the supply of electric-ity in germany and the associated drop in deductible input tax from the purchase of electricity fed in from eeg plants.

as of the reporting date, the inclusion in eurogrid’s cash pool system resulted in a receivable to affiliates of eur 122.3m (prior year: liability of eur 258.0m).

at eur 855.8m, equity was unchanged on the prior year; it is made up of capital stock (eur 200m) and capital re-serves (eur 655.8m).

non-current liabilities include the shareholder loan granted by eurogrid of eur 500.0m (prior year: eur 300.0m). this item also mainly contains various provisions of eur 85.8m (prior year: eur 85.6m) and deferred income of eur 147.4m (prior year: eur 122.3m), with longer terms.

medium and current liabilities mainly contain the remaining provisions of eur 862.2m (prior year: eur 556.8m), which in turn mainly result from the eeg and additional cost allocation processes (eur 662.8m; prior year: eur 397.8m). trade payables amounted to eur 179.8m (prior year: eur 173.3m).

Cash flow statement the development in cash flow from operating activities re-flects the extent to which the company’s liquidity situation fluctuates mainly due to the settlement of the non-profit business. despite what were occasionally high deficits in the eeg account over the course of the year, the eeg cost allocation with the liquidity buffer contained therein at year-end had an extremely positive effect on the liquidity situation as of the reporting date. in addition, the income from the offshore liability cost allocation, combined with the currently low payments for compensation, resulted in an improved liquidity situation. Favorable weather conditions, lower energy costs and higher network user income also had an overall positive impact on liquidity.

as well as payments for additions to property, plant and equipment (eur 244.6m), the cash flow from investing activities also includes the issue of a loan of eur 95.0m as well as an allocation of eur 55.0m to the capital reserves at 50hertz Offshore. cash flow from financing activities comprises the net cash flow from the profit transfer for the fiscal year 2013 (eur 276.0m). a short-term loan from eurogrid of eur 200m was repaid; at the same time, the existing non-current loan from the shareholder was increased by eur 200m.



the financing of 50hertz was secured throughout the entire fiscal year 2013. the cash pool with eurogrid was in place throughout the entire fiscal year.

in fiscal year 2013, there was a consolidated tax group for income tax in place with eurogrid. Furthermore, 50hertz transmission acts as the interposed parent towards 50hertz Offshore in terms of income tax and vat.

Consolidated statement of cash flows (condensed) 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013eur m

1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012eur m

Changeeur m

cash flow from operating activities 1,064.0 – 241.5 1.305.5

cash flow from investing activities – 401.3 – 217.7 – 183.6

cash flow from financing activities – 276.0 – 27.8 – 248.2

Change in cash and cash equivalents 386.7 – 487.0 873.7

cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 130.3 – 256.4 386.7

overall picture of the economic situationin the fiscal year 2013, the result from ordinary activities was also mainly characterized by nonrecurring effects from changes to the regulatory framework (introduction of the t minus 0 mechanism for investment measures in place of the t minus 2 time delay), which must be interpreted in connec-tion with past fiscal years. in addition, the change in profit for the year is also a direct result of lower energy costs and the revenue from increasing investments taking effect in 2013.

the financial obligations due in fiscal year 2013 were cov-ered at all times by the available liquidity and the shareholder loan.

equity investments50hertz transmission has a 100% shareholding in 50hertz Offshore. 50hertz transmission assigned the task of con-structing and operating the grid connections of offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea to 50hertz Offshore.

50hertz transmission has a 12.5% shareholding in central allocation Office gmbh (caO) based in Freising and 20% of the shares in european market coupling company gmbh (emcc) based in hamburg. the two companies have the purpose of providing bottleneck management services for transmission grids. the introduction of new load flow-based procedures involving coupling the market in northwestern

europe means a key portion of emcc’s tasks will not be needed in future, which is why a resolution on the future dissolution of the company was passed in fiscal year 2012.

50hertz transmission has a 10.1% shareholding in cOre-SO Sa (cOreSO) based in Brussels, Belgium. cOreSO is the coordination and service center for load flows in the central western european region.

at the beginning of may 2013, 50hertz transmission ac-quired 1.75% and then a further 0.5% in december 2013 of the eeX in leipzig, resulting in its share in the eeX amount-ing to 2.25% on 31 december 2013 with a share value of eur 5.4m. 50hertz intends to acquire a total share of up to 4.31% in the eeX by making additional purchases in the first half of 2014.

Forecast report

50hertz will continue to invest in the development of its network, in order to securely and efficiently establish the increasing share of renewable energies and to be able to transport these in the direction of consumption centers. 50hertz’s largest onshore projects at the moment are the construction of the southwest connecting line, increasing the electrical load-carrying capacity of the Bärwalde-Schmölln line and the expansion, retrofit and modernization of the hamburg grid area. in the offshore area, the focus is on the connection of the Baltic 2 offshore wind farm. investing activities will pick up further in the coming year and will probably remain at a high level for several years.

as a result of the increasing investment activities and the volumes from the eeg to be prefinanced, the financing volume will increase. the liquidity situation for the eeg business may remain tense due to the influence of market premiums if the positive effect from increasing the liquid-ity buffer via the eeg cost allocation is not sufficient. this requires the development of 50 hertz’s financial instruments and continued active cash management. Financing will be secured via the parent company eurogrid for which moody’s confirmed a Baa1 rating in June 2013.

cost development for actual grid operations, i.e., mainte-nance, personnel, administration and operations, will be shaped by grid expansion as well as the energy policy. the amount needed to cover these costs will be determined in a cost review and the europe-wide efficiency benchmark. 50hertz makes continuous efforts to ensure a high degree of efficiency in its processes and cost structures in order to minimize the increased costs that are necessary for the new energy concept in germany. the costs for system services, redispatch measures as well as grid losses are primarily influenced by the development of electricity prices, weather conditions and grid topology.

50hertz transmission’s result from ordinary activities for 2014 will most likely fall significantly short of the 2013 result from ordinary activities (eur 272.6m). this forecast is mainly based on the following premises:

– normal business development of the transmission system operator without any extraordinary weather conditions, such as storms, and without any major technical disruptions

– Smaller impact of one-off/catch-up effects from changes in the regulatory environment

– continued moderate development in energy costs– Ongoing high degree of cost discipline in business

processes



Risk management system

the aims of the risk management system are to avoid any risks jeopardizing 50hertz’s ability to continue as a going concern, to reduce existing risk items and to optimize the risk/opportunity profile. risks are recognized, recorded, evaluated and monitored in a standardized manner applying the risk guidelines. the assessment of potential losses and the likelihood of their occurrence is based on scenarios. this ensures that the risk situation is continually monitored, especially to ensure the early recognition of risks to the group’s ability to continue as a going concern, and sup-

ports the selection and implementation of measures to overcome such risks. enhancement of the risk manage-ment system entails the systematic development and central pursuit of plans of action for combating key corporate risks. relevant individual risks and the overall risk situation are reported regularly to management, the supervisory board and the shareholders. the respective decision makers are informed ad hoc in the event of any significant changes. the functionality and effectiveness of the risk management system is regularly subject to review.

Opportunities and risks

opportunitiesWhile maintaining efficiency and ensuring that it invests in the transmission and grid connections as and when it is needed, 50hertz has the opportunity to improve its regu-lated asset base and to achieve organic growth. Further opportunities involve achieving a solid position as an inde-pendent transmission system operator, actively implement-ing the changes and new regulations relating to the new energy concept in germany as well as being a reliable and high-performing partner for the customers being supplied in the balancing zone.

Risks from political, regulatory and legislative matters 50hertz’s network user charges are subject to regulations issued by the Federal network authority. any decisions made by the Federal network authority in the current regulatory framework could have a significant impact on 50hertz, be it positive or negative.

Furthermore, the regulatory framework is subject to intense discussion on a european, national and regional level. 50hertz monitors and follows european and national legislative proceedings. european guidelines and regulations due to be transposed soon into national law (e.g., provisions contained in the third energy liberalization package) can also lead to new burdens or risks for the company.

laws and guidelines on renewable energies also have a strong influence on 50hertz’s risk situation and liquidity. changes to such legislation or the interpretation of this legislation by the Federal network authority, can either significantly improve or worsen the company’s risk or liquidity situation.

uncertainty regarding approval of an adequate level of income to cover the costs of the operating phase and the conditional ex-post review of investing activities by the regulatory authorities in terms of appropriateness, scope and extent pose a risk for 50hertz. this is confronted by constantly monitoring the costs and weighing up the costs and benefits. investments that are not approved by the Federal network agency also lead to lower imputed costs and therefore to a decrease in network user charges.

the authorization to operate the grid in germany cannot expire, but can be revoked if 50hertz (for example) does not possess the staffing, technical and economic capability and reliability to ensure that grid operations are constantly in compliance with legal requirements.

Furthermore, negative consequences for the company value as a result of losing this permit cannot be ruled out.

technology/infrastructure 50hertz’s non-current assets are geographically widespread and can be the potential target for theft, acts of terrorism and sabotage.

as an infrastructure operator for a secure and reliable elec-tricity supply to more than 18 million people, 50hertz makes every effort to also be as well-equipped as possible for crisis situations. crisis tools are therefore constantly refined and emergency exercises regularly carried out, so as to train skills and identify any potential for improvement. in 2013, the transmission control center, a regional center, security bodies and other external partners were included in con-ducting a complex emergency exercise.

in the event of voltage fluctuations or interruptions, power outages or a failure to implement legally prescribed emer-gency measures, 50hertz can be held liable for any cus-tomer and/or third-party damage. additional costs that will not necessarily be recognized by the regulatory authorities may also be incurred.

the connection of offshore wind farms is a business field with additional technical and organizational challenges, because the legislature has decided to place wind farms rela- tively far away from the german coast. despite careful preparation and analyses, technical problems are often only discovered in the implementation stage and have to then be solved immediately. delays and changes are therefore likely in the planning and construction stages. Should 50hertz be deemed responsible for the delay (normally also the case if e.g., the fault lies with one of 50hertz’s contractual part-ners), the company must essentially reimburse the wind farm operator for the financial loss incurred. any expenses in connection with such indemnification payments can partly be offset against compensation amounts by means of recourse to the suppliers. the amendment to enWg also introduced an offshore liability cost allocation, which limits the risks for transmission system operators when connect-ing offshore wind farms. this amendment replaces the previ-ous method of satisfying the criteria of offshore wind farms by approving structured grid expansion based on planning submitted by the transmission system operators; moreover,

the transmission system operator now only has to pay a portion of the compensation payment itself in the event of culpable delay or damage to the connection. however, despite this new regulation, significant risks still remain at the transmission system operator making the connection.

the construction of lines constantly meets with opposition from locals, leading to long-winded administrative proceed-ings. line-construction delays are therefore still likely despite the intense efforts of 50hertz’s approval and communication experts. this can lead to an increase in critical situations for grid operations as the new lines are urgently needed in high-consumption areas, mainly for transporting the ever- growing volatile feed-in volume of renewable energies in 50hertz’s balancing zone and also because the planned shutdown of nuclear power plants in southern federal states is getting closer.

Health and industrial safetyaccidents can occur at 50hertz’s facilities or in connection with the use of 50hertz’s plants that may result in human injury or death or other serious consequences. this could result in lawsuits against 50hertz, which bring with them considerable financial obligations, reductions in financial and personnel resources as well as loss of reputation. risk analyses have been performed for activities at 50hertz and the relevant measures developed and implemented. employees in manual jobs are instructed six times a year, those in engineering and commercial areas once a year.

the know-how of our employees is essential for 50hertz’s business activities. essential knowhow can be lost as a result of employee turnover and insufficient know-how transfer. measures are implemented to reduce this risk, e.g., positions are occupied in tandem before an employee leaves the company.

Markets and finances 50hertz is required to purchase the energy generated from renewable energy sources in the balancing zone at a specified price and to sell it on the exchange. this results in liquidity risks (and opportunities) that have however no impact on earnings.



extreme fluctuations can also arise in the costs for balanc-ing energy, grid losses and redispatch measures. earnings effects are reduced by regulatory models.

in the area of energy procurement, 50hertz is subject to the general market risks that are seen on the electricity market. 50hertz uses electricity products and contracts customary on the market for the energy it needs to cover system-re-lated grid losses, in order to be able to counter the existing market price risks in an appropriate manner. Based on a risk-averse procurement strategy and taking the regulatory framework conditions to compensate for costs for grid losses into account, 50hertz actively manages its market activities and its related internal risk considerations. When procuring the energy needed to cover grid losses for its own portfolios, 50hertz acts on the electricity market exclusively with the objective of covering its own needs. using physical and financial contracts on the electricity market gives rise to general cover risks and also credit risks and liquidity risks in connection with market partners. these are countered with internal control measures. From the perspective of network user charge regulations, the method used to secure the energy needed to cover grid losses ensures that prices are hedged to the extent necessary as required by the Fed- eral network agency for the grid customers. this at the same time prevents the market price risks of the electric-ity market reaching grid customers while keeping process costs at a reasonable level.

the procurement of energy needed to cover grid losses is also rendered as a service for third parties; for 50hertz these trading transactions are by nature transit items only due to direct cross charging and do not therefore result in inde-pendent risk positions.

in the past year, a case of fraud concerning transmission grids which came to light in another balancing zone showed that balancing group management can also be susceptible to risk as a result of data reports stretching over a long pe-riod of time. 50hertz examined its own reporting processes and took suitable measures to minimize this risk.

50hertz must obtain refinancing on the capital market together with the parent company eurogrid. this can result in financing bottlenecks on the money and capital markets which are limited by means of a line of credit that has been secured for the long term, but not yet drawn.

overall risk situation50hertz’s ability to continue as a going concern was not jeopardized by individual risks or its aggregated risk position in fiscal year 2013. taking into account the measures taken, there are no such risks for fiscal year 2014 either.

Subsequent events

no events of significant importance occurred from the time of the reporting date to the issue date of 50hertz transmis-sion’s financial statements.

Berlin, 18. February 2014

the management

Boris Schucht udo giegerich dr. dirk Biermann dr. Frank golletz



Financial statements

Statement of financial positionAssets note 31 Dec 2013

eur m31 Dec 2012

eur m

Fixed assets (1)

intangible assets 39.0 38.0

Property, plant and equipment 1,512.9 1,330.3

Financial assets 478.1 322.9

2,030.0 1,691.2

Current assets

Inventories (2) 3.8 3.4

Receivables and other assets (3)

trade receivables 642.5 446.0

receivables from affiliates 122.6 0.1

receivables from other investees and investors 1.2 1.5

Other assets 98.2 595.4

864.5 1,043.0

Cash and cash equivalents (4) 8.0 1.6

876.3 1,048.0

prepaid expenses 1.9 2.8

Special loss account from the recognition of provisions (5) 3.6 4.1

excess of covering assets over pension and similar obligations (6) 1.5 1.1

2,913.3 2,747.2

equity and liabilities note 31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

equity (7)

issued capital 200.0 200.0

capital reserves 655.8 655.8

Other revenue reserves – 0.0

855.8 855.8

Special items (8) 7.5 8.0

provisions (9)

Pensions and similar obligations 10.1 9.6

tax provisions 0.4 5.3

Other provisions 937.5 627.5

948.0 642.4

liabilities (10)

Prepayments received on account of orders 56.3 39.4

trade payables 179.8 173.3

liabilities to affiliates 502.3 763.8

Other liabilities 92.6 56.4

831.0 1,032.9

Deferred income (11) 271.0 208.1

2,913.3 2,747.2

Financial StatementS OF 50hertZ tranSmiSSiOn gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 84


Income statementnote 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013

eur m1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012

eur m

revenue (12) 8,128.0 8,352.0

increase in work in process (prior year: decrease) 0.7 – 3.7

Own work capitalized (13) 17.4 18.6

Other operating income (14) 517.2 296.9

cost of materials (15) – 7,735.4 – 7,994.4

Personnel expenses (16) – 68.9 – 62.8

amortization, depreciation and write-downs (17) – 64.5 – 65.1

Other operating expenses (18) – 533.3 – 311.3

investment result (19) 18.1 16.6

interest result (20) – 6.7 – 15.3

Result from ordinary activities 272.6 231.5

income taxes (21) 4.5 – 4.6

Other taxes (22) – 1.1 – 0.5

expense from profit transfer (23) – 276.0 – 227.8

net income for the year (prior year: net loss for the year) 0.0 – 1.4

profit appropriation

net income for the year (prior year: net lossfor the year) – – 1.4

Withdrawal from other revenue reserves (24) – 1.4

Retained earnings 0.0 0.0

Cash flow statement1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013

eur m1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012

eur m

net income for the year before profit/loss transfer 276.0 226.4

Write-downs of fixed assets 64.5 65.4

increase in provisions (prior year: decrease) 305.7 – 362.7

Other non-cash income – 0.6 – 0.6

loss from the disposal of fixed assets (prior year: gain) 0.2 0.8

increase in inventories (prior year: decrease) – 0.4 3.4

decrease in receivables and other assets (prior year: increase) 301.8 – 147.0

increase in liabilities and other equity and liabilities (prior year: decrease) 116.8 – 27.2

Cash flow from operating activities 1,064.0 – 241.5

cash paid for investments in property, plant and equipment and intangible assets – 248.7 – 144.4

cash received from construction cost subsidies 2.2 6.5

cash received from disposals of fixed assets 0.4 0.2

cash paid for investments in fixed financial assets – 155.4 – 80.0

cash received from disposals of fixed financial assets 0.2 0.0

Cash flow from investing activities – 401.3 – 217.7

cash received from shareholder loans 200.0 200.0

cash paid for the repayment of shareholder loans – 200.0 –

cash paid to owners (distribution from the reserves) 0.0 – 1.4

cash paid for the profit/loss transfer – 276.0 – 226.4

Cash flow from financing activities – 276.0 – 27.8

Change in cash and cash equivalents 386.7 – 487.0

cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the period – 256.4 230.6

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 130.3 –256.4



Statement of changes in fixed assetsCost Amortization, depreciation and write-downs Carrying amount

1 Jan 2013 eur m

additions eur m

reclassifications eur m

disposals eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

1 Jan 2013 eur m

additions eur m


disposals eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

31 dec 2012 eur m

Intangible assets

Purchased software, licenses and other plant rights 56.1 4.1 0.8 0.3 60.7 18.1 3.7 – 0.1 21.7 39.0 38.0

Prepayments – – – – – – – – – – – –

56.1 4.1 0.8 0.3 60.7 18.1 3.7 – 0.1 21.7 39.0 38.0

property, plant and equipment

land, land rights and buildings including buildings on third-party land 120.7 14.5 1.8 0.1 136.9 42.2 1.6 – 0.1 43.7 93.2 78.5

technical equipment and machinery 2,667.9 33.2 71.9 29.8 2,743.2 1,583.7 53.5 – 29.4 1,607.8 1,135.4 1,084.2

Other equipment, furniture and fixtures 65.9 5.2 4.1 4.0 71.2 47.7 5.7 – 4.0 49.4 21.8 18.2

Prepayments and assets under construction 149.4 191.7 – 78.6 – 262.5 – – – – – 262.5 149.4

3,003.9 244.6 – 0.8 33.9 3,213.8 1,673.6 60.8 – 33.5 1,700.9 1,512.9 1,330.3

Financial assets

Shares in affiliates 146.0 55.0 – – 201.0 – – – – – 201.0 146.0

loans to affiliates 176.3 95.0 – – 271.3 – – – – – 271.3 176.3

Securities classified as fixed assets – 5.4 – – 5.4 – – – – – 5.4 –

investments 0.5 – – – 0.5 0.3 – – – 0.3 0.2 0.2

Other loans 0.4 – – 0.2 0.2 – – – – – 0.2 0.4

323.2 155.4 – 0.2 478.4 0.3 – – – 0.3 478.1 322.9

Fixed assets 3,383.2 404.1 0.0 34.4 3,752.9 1,692.0 64.5 – 33.6 1,722.9 2,030.0 1,691.2

Cost Amortization, depreciation and write-downs Carrying amount

1 Jan 2013 eur m

additions eur m


disposals eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

1 Jan 2013 eur m

additions eur m


disposals eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

31 dec 2013 eur m

31 dec 2012 eur m

Intangible assets

Purchased software, licenses and other plant rights 56.1 4.1 0.8 0.3 60.7 18.1 3.7 – 0.1 21.7 39.0 38.0

Prepayments – – – – – – – – – – – –

56.1 4.1 0.8 0.3 60.7 18.1 3.7 – 0.1 21.7 39.0 38.0


land, land rights and buildings including buildings on third-party land 120.7 14.5 1.8 0.1 136.9 42.2 1.6 – 0.1 43.7 93.2 78.5

technical equipment and machinery 2,667.9 33.2 71.9 29.8 2,743.2 1,583.7 53.5 – 29.4 1,607.8 1,135.4 1,084.2

Other equipment, furniture and fixtures 65.9 5.2 4.1 4.0 71.2 47.7 5.7 – 4.0 49.4 21.8 18.2

Prepayments and assets under construction 149.4 191.7 – 78.6 – 262.5 – – – – – 262.5 149.4

3,003.9 244.6 – 0.8 33.9 3,213.8 1,673.6 60.8 – 33.5 1,700.9 1,512.9 1,330.3

Financial assets

Shares in affiliates 146.0 55.0 – – 201.0 – – – – – 201.0 146.0

loans to affiliates 176.3 95.0 – – 271.3 – – – – – 271.3 176.3

Securities classified as fixed assets – 5.4 – – 5.4 – – – – – 5.4 –

investments 0.5 – – – 0.5 0.3 – – – 0.3 0.2 0.2

Other loans 0.4 – – 0.2 0.2 – – – – – 0.2 0.4

323.2 155.4 – 0.2 478.4 0.3 – – – 0.3 478.1 322.9

Fixed assets 3,383.2 404.1 0.0 34.4 3,752.9 1,692.0 64.5 – 33.6 1,722.9 2,030.0 1,691.2



Notes to the financial statements

General

50hertz transmission gmbh (50hertz transmission) is reg-istered in the commercial register of charlottenburg district court under hrB no. 84446.

the financial statements of 50hertz transmission were prepared in accordance with the provisions of the hgB [“handelsgesetzbuch”: german commercial code] and the sup-plementary provisions of the gmbhg [“gesetz betreffend die gesellschaften mit beschränkter haftung”: german limited liability companies act] as well as in observation of the enWg [“energiewirtschaftsgesetz”: german energy industry act]. all amounts are in millions of euros (eur m). in the interest of clarity, items have been combined in the consolidated income statement and in the statement of financial position and disclosed separately and explained in the notes. the income statement has been prepared using the nature of expense method. the presentation of individ-ual items in the statement of financial position and income statement was adjusted; the prior-year figures were also structured accordingly to improve comparability.

50hertz transmission qualifies as a large corporation in ac-cordance with the size criteria under Sec. 267 (3) Sentence 3 hgB and has prepared the financial statements in line with the requirements for this legal form.

50hertz transmission is included in the consolidated financial statements of eurogrid gmbh (eurogrid), with its regis-

tered office in Berlin, and in the consolidated financial statements of elia System Operator Sa/nv, with its registered office in Brussels, Belgium. the consolidated financial statements of elia System Operator Sa/nv with the largest group of companies can be obtained from elia System Op-erator Sa/nv, Boulevard de l´empereur 20, 1000 Brussels, Belgium. the consolidated financial statements prepared by eurogrid cover the smallest group of companies and can be obtained from the Bundesanzeiger [german Federal ga-zette] (www.bundesanzeiger.de). the company is registered in the commercial register of Berlin- charlottenburg district court under hrB no. 130427 B. as a result of being in-cluded in the consolidated financial statements of eurogrid, there is no separate obligation to prepare consolidated subgroup financial statements comprising 50hertz trans-mission and 50hertz Offshore gmbh (50hertz Offshore).

a profit and loss transfer agreement was concluded between eurogrid and 50hertz transmission effective 1 June 2010. at the same time, a consolidated tax group for income tax was formed with eurogrid as the parent of the tax group.

as a result of the domination and profit and loss transfer agreement in place between 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Offshore, 50hertz transmission acts as the interposed parent towards 50hertz Offshore. there is a consolidated tax group for income tax and vat purposes in place between these two companies.

Accounting and valuation methods

AssetsFixed assetsPurchased intangible assets are recognized at acquisition cost and amortized on a straight-line basis over their esti-mated useful lives.

Property, plant and equipment are stated at cost less de-preciation. Production costs for internally produced assets

include appropriate pro rata overheads in addition to the directly attributable costs. Borrowing costs are not included.

items of property, plant and equipment acquired or produced before 1 January 2008 are depreciated using the declining balance method. a transition to the straight-line method is used as soon as this results in higher depreciation amounts. the straight-line method is used for items of property, plant

http://www.bundesanzeiger.de

and equipment acquired or produced as of 1 January 2008.

the useful lives are based on the useful lives accepted by the Federal network agency in order to better take into account the increasing regulatory accounting needs and to increase the informative value of the financial statements with regard to the applicable regulatory framework. the use of accepted useful lives appropriately reflects the actual depletion of the fixed assets. amounts in the statement of financial position resulting from the opening statement of financial position in dem were not included in this valuation change, but instead rolled forward based on the “1990 revaluation”.

impairments are only recorded when the asset needs to be written down to a lower net realizable value.

Financial assets are recorded at the lower of cost or market and in accordance with the requirement to reinstate original value. extraordinary write-downs are not recorded for tem-porary impairment.

loans are recognized at their nominal value and, where appropriate, discounted to the reporting date.

Separately usable moveable fixed assets costing less than eur 150 that have a limited life are recognized immediately in profit or loss. assets costing between eur 150 and eur 1,000 are posted to a collective item pursuant to Sec. 6 (2a) eStg [“einkommensteuergesetz”: german income tax act] in the year of acquisition, also for the statutory accounts. the collective item is written off in installments of one fifth in the year in which it is recognized and each of the following four years.

Current assetsinventories are measured at acquisition and production cost using generally accepted simplified valuation methods and applying the lower of cost or market principle. inven-tory risks arising from decreased salability are covered by adequate allowances.

receivables, other assets and cash and cash equivalents are stated at their nominal value or net realizable value, which-

ever is lower. all recognizable individual risks and the general credit risk are accounted for by appropriate allowances.

prepaid expensesPrepaid expenses refer to expenses of the reporting date, insofar as they concern future periods.

Special loss account from the recognition of provisionsa special loss account from the recognition of provisions pursuant to Sec. 17 (4) dmBilg [“dmBilanzgesetz”: german act on Opening Balance Sheets in german marks] is recog-nized on the assets side for provisions that had to be recog-nized in the opening statement of financial position in dem in connection with the first-time application of Sec. 249 (1) Sentence 1 hgB on 1 July 1990. the special loss account changes according to the utilization and reversal of the underlying provisions recognized in the opening statement of financial position in dem, which only include provisions for eliminating ecological burdens. this account is continued up until the complete utilization or reversal of the provisions recognized in the opening statement of financial position in dem in the amount originally recognized at nominal value as a result of the dmBilg.

excess of covering assets over pension and similar obligationsin accordance with Sec. 246 (2) Sentence 2 and Sentence 3 hgB, a positive difference between the fair value of the covering assets and the company’s existing pension obliga-tions or comparable long-term obligations existing on the reporting date is disclosed as an asset. this amount arises from the complete insolvency protection of the provision for employee entitlements from working lifetime accounts.

equity and liabilitiesequitythe issued capital is measured at nominal value.

Special iteminvestment subsidies and grants received are recorded in the special item. the items are released to income in accordance with depreciation of the subsidized assets.

nOteS tO the Financial StatementS OF 50hertZ tranSmiSSiOn gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 90


provisionsin the calculation of provisions, all recognizable risks and uncertain liabilities were taken into account as required according to prudent business judgment and recorded at the settlement value necessary.

the projected unit credit method was selected for the measurement of pension obligations and long-service bonuses. discounting was calculated using the mean market interest rate of 4.90% (prior year: 5.06%) for a remaining term of 15 years in accordance with the rücka-bzinsv [“rückstellungsabzinsungsverordnung”: german Ordinance on the discounting of Provisions]. the interest rate of 4.90% p. a. (prior year: 5.06%) was also used for the measurement of obligations from working lifetime ac-counts. the calculations are based on the 2005 g mortality tables of Prof. dr. Klaus heubeck. Future salary increases were set at 3.0% p. a. (prior year: 3.0% p. a.). expected pension increases were taken into account at rates be-tween 1.00 and 3.00% p. a..

Provisions for the company pension plan recorded under the company’s congruent pension obligations are covered to a large extent by employer’s pension liability insurance. the amount of the provisions corresponds to the amount of the covering assets. the fair value of the covering assets corresponds to the cash surrender value on the reporting date of the employer’s pension liability insurance. Provisions for employee entitlements from working lifetime accounts are fully protected against insolvency; as a rule, the provi-sions for the german phased retirement scheme are only partially protected against insolvency. in accordance with Sec. 246 (2) Sentence 2 hgB, the respective covering assets are netted against the provisions for the company pension plan, working lifetime accounts and the german phased retirement scheme; interest expenses from unwind-ing the discount on provisions are netted against interest income from topping up the covering assets.

Obligations from phased and early retirement arrangements (the latter only until 31 december 2011) are recognized under other provisions on the basis of actuarial reports and using an interest rate of 3.50% (prior year: 3.98%) in accor-

dance with the rückabzinsv over an average term of two years. this involved determining and measuring the actuarial present value of future payment obligations. these calcula-tions are also based on the 2005 g mortality tables of Prof. dr. Klaus heubeck. Future salary increases were set at 2.5% p. a. (prior year: 2.5% p. a.).

Other non-current provisions were discounted pursuant to the rückabzinsv.

the interest portion from the increase in personnel-related provisions is recorded in the interest result.

liabilitiesliabilities are recognized at the settlement value deemed necessary.

Payments from customers collected in connection with the examination and preparation of grid connections (connec-tion authorizations) in accordance with Sec. 4 Kraftnav [“Kraftwerks- netzanschlussverordnung”: Ordinance for regulating grid connections] are disclosed as prepayments. customer payments are also recorded in connection with the installation of jointly used facilities. Subsidies received are recorded as prepayments for as long as the underlying project remains unconcluded.

Deferred incomeconstruction cost subsidies received are recognized as deferred income and released on a straight-line basis. until 31 december 2002, construction cost subsidies received were released to income over 20 years unless a shorter term has been agreed. Since 1 January 2003, construction cost subsidies received have been released to income in line with the useful life of the asset.

amounts paid to 50hertz transmission in prior years from cross-border bottleneck management are recorded as de-ferred income. these are used for investments for maintain-ing or expanding connection capacities. in return, 50hertz transmission must pay a consideration for the amounts received, which it recognizes as a subsidized construction loan under equity and liabilities.

the deferred horizontal grid income is recognized over 30 years as determined by the Federal network agency. in addition to the income from bottleneck management, other income generated in connection with additional voluntary commitments was also recognized as deferred income. here too, the deduction is also performed by taking the network user charges in subsequent years into account.

Other amounts also primarily relate to deferred income from long-term contractual relationships which are only recog-nized in profit or loss in subsequent periods.

Deferred taxes50hertz transmission is included in the consolidated tax group for income tax purposes of eurogrid. deferred taxes arising due to temporary or quasi-permanent differences between the carrying amounts of assets, liabilities, prepaid expenses and deferred income in the statutory accounts and their tax carrying amounts or due to tax loss carryfor-wards are determined at the level of the controlling entity.

Grid-based accountingWhen preparing the annual financial statements, expenses and income and the corresponding receivables and liabilities in the area of grid-based accounting were determined based on preliminary data provided by third parties and partly based on forecasts.

this primarily relates to the settlement of the eeg and KWKg processes, the accounting of the balancing group, grid utilization as well as the accounting of system services. For a final statement on the actual expenses and income incurred, external data of each partner are decisive, in par-ticular the actual electricity volumes, some of which are only confirmed when the respective certification of the independ-ent auditor has been issued.

as this data is by nature not available in its entirety when the financial statements are prepared, the corresponding items in the financial statements were estimated using the data available and taking into account the information available at the time of preparing the financial statements.

Foreign currency translationForeign currency assets and liabilities are translated using the average spot rate on the reporting date.



Shareholding %

equityeur m

earningseur m

1. Affiliates

50hertz Offshore gmbh, Berlin 100.0 201.0 – 1)

2. Investments

european market coupling company gmbh, hamburg 20.0 1.0 1.0 2)

central allocation Office gmbh, Freising 12.5 1.7 0.1 2)

cOreSO Sa., Brussels/ Belgium 10.1 1.6 0.2 3)

3rd Securities classified as non-current assets

eeX ag, leipzig 2.25 113.7 13.1 4)

1) Profit and loss transfer agreement 2) Financial statements as of 31 december 20123) Financial statements as of 31 december 2013 4) Financial statements 2012; eBt 2012

31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

Changeeur m

raw materials, consumables and supplie 2.1 2.4 – 0.3

Work in process 1.7 1.0 0.7

3.8 3.4 0.4

Notes to the statement of financial position

(1) Fixed assets

the breakdown of the fixed asset items summarized in the statement of financial position and their development is shown in the statement of changes in fixed assets.

Securities classified as fixed assets of eur 5.4m from the acquisition of shares in eeX were recognized in fixed assets for the first time in the fiscal year.

list of shareholdingsthe shareholdings of 50hertz transmission break down as follows:

(2) Inventories

31 Dec 2013

eur m

thereof due

> one yeareur m

31 Dec 2012

eur m

thereof due

> one yeareur m

trade receivables 642.5 – 446.0 –

receivables from affiliates 122.6 – 0.1 –

thereof from shareholder 122.5 – 0.0 –

receivables from other investees and investors

1.2

–

1.5

–

Other assets 98.2 0.1 595.4 10.1

864.5 0.1 1,043.0 10.1

(3) Receivables and other assets

receivables from affiliates primarily include a receivable from the shareholder from the cash pool with eurogrid of eur 122.3m (prior year: eur 0.0m). all other receivables from affiliates and from other investees and investors relate to trade receivables.

Other assets contain receivables from the tax office from deductible input tax of eur 4.1m (prior year: eur 94.3m), for which returns had not been filed on 31 december 2013. as of the reporting date, compensation claims of eur 0.3m remained from the eeg process (prior year: eur 430.0m). the other cost allocation processes contain receivables totaling eur 47.3m (prior year: eur 17.5m). Furthermore, earmarked subsidies with a term of more than one year of eur 0.1m (prior year: eur 10.1m) were disclosed.

(4) Cash and cash equivalents

cash and cash equivalents comprised cash on hand as well as bank balances on the reporting date.

this includes a foreign currency balance of dKK 55.3m (eur 7.7m), which is counterbalanced by an identical liability.

(5) Special loss account from the recognition of provisions

the development of the special loss account from the recognition of provisions occurs in line with the development of the nominal obligation of the provision for ecological bur-

dens. this nominal obligation amounted to eur 3.6m (prior year: eur 4.1m) as of the reporting date.



31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

Change eur m

Outstanding eeg invoices 396.0 329.8 66.2

eeg balancing energy 85.7 27.0 58.7

additional cost allocation processes 181.1 41.0 140.1

network user charges 156.8 89.2 67.6

Personnel-related provisions 11.4 12.0 – 0.6

easements for line use rights 71.3 67.9 3.4

litigation risks 9.4 14.7 – 5.3

911.7 581.6 330.1

Sundry other provisions 25.8 45.9 – 20.1

937.5 627.5 310.0

(6) excess of covering assets over pension and similar obligations

Offsetting the recognized provision against the asset value from the insurance cover (covering assets) produces an ex-cess of covering assets over pension and similar obligations of eur 1.5m as of the reporting date (prior year:

eur 1.1m). the item results from netting the provisions for working lifetime accounts of eur 3.3m (prior year: eur 2.4m) with the respective cash surrender values of eur 4.8m (prior year: eur 3.5m).

(7) equity

the company’s issued capital of eur 200m is fully paid in and is held in full by eurogrid. the capital reserves remain unchanged on the prior year at eur 655.8m.

the net income for the year of eur 276.0m was transferred to eurogrid.

(8) Special item

the special item for investment subsidies and grants amounts to eur 7.5m (prior year: eur 8.0m).

(9) provisions

the provisions for pension obligations arise from the set-tlement amount of the liabilities offset of eur 22.1m (prior year: eur 22.0m) and the fair value of the assets offset

(covering assets) of eur 12.0m (prior year: eur 12.4m).the tax provisions relate to periods not yet covered by the tax group.

other provisions break down as follows:

in the personnel-related provisions, provisions for the ger-man phased retirement scheme of eur 3.0m (prior year: eur 4.6m) were offset against the asset values from the

employer’s liability insurance cover (covering assets) of eur 2.5m (prior year: eur 3.2m).

31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

total due in < one year

due in > five years


due in > five years

Prepayments received 56.3 56.3 – 39.4 39.4 –

trade payables 179.8 179.8 0.0 173.3 173.2 0.0

liabilities to affiliates 502.3 2.3 500.0 763.8 463.8 –

thereof to the shareholder 501.9 1.9 500.0 763.0 463.8 –

Other liabilities 92.6 79.3 0.0 56.4 56.0 0.4

thereof from taxes 17.1 17.1 – 1.7 1.7 –

thereof relating to social security 0.3 0.3 – 0.4 0.4 –

831.0 317.7 500.0 1,032.9 732.4 0.4

(10) liabilities

at eur 502.3m (prior year: eur 763.0m), liabilities to affili-ates relate almost exclusively to a loan with the shareholder of eur 500.0m (prior year: eur 300.0m). the remaining sum relates to trade payables (eur 2.3m). in the prior year, liabilities from the cash pooling of eur 258.0m were included in liabilities to affiliates.

Other liabilities mainly contain liabilities from cost allocation processes of eur 19.4m (prior year: eur 18.8m) as well as from the balancing group settlement of eur 17.8m (prior year: eur 13.2m).

(11) Deferred income

31 Dec 2013 eur m

31 Dec 2012 eur m

Change eur m

investment-related construction cost subsidies 45.8 48.9 – 3.1

income from bottleneck management as well as amounts for future offsetting from voluntary commitments

206.2 138.8 67.4

Other deferred income 19.0 20.4 – 1.4

271.0 208.1 62.9



Own work capitalized includes costs from the fiscal year included in production costs as part of the company’s investment projects.

Notes to the income statement



Change eur m

eeg income 6,284.1 6,343.8 – 59.7

Services for third parties 907.5 1,113.4 – 205.9

Cost-matching income 7,191.6 7,457.2 – 265.6

network user charges 988.9 713.7 275.2

System services 31.4 50.3 – 18.9

Balancing group management 52.8 79.8 – 27.0

compensation for network user charges in different periods – 140.4 44.6 – 185.0

Other revenue 3.7 6.4 – 2.7

Revenue from grid business 936.4 894.8 41.6

8,128.0 8,352.0 – 224.0

eeg income relates to income from selling renewable energies on the electricity exchange, the agreed eeg cost allocation as well as deliveries to other transmission system operators to offset the burdens on the transmission system operators from the implementation of the eeg.

Services for third parties contain the business for selling eeg electricity as well as the procurement of grid losses for other grid operators.

in addition to network user charges, revenue from the grid business contains all revenue generated by the group directly in connection with grid operations. the income from balancing group management represents the cross charg-ing of balance energy costs to all balancing group custom-ers operating in the balancing zone. the compensation for network user charges in different periods includes effects arising with a time delay as a result of the current regulatory framework. these relate to network user charges both from earlier periods and from following periods.

(13) own work capitalized

(12) Revenue



Change eur m

KWKg cost allocation * ) 88.5 76.2 12.3

income pursuant to Sec. 19 (2) Stromnev * ) 225.4 176.9 48.5

income from the offshore liability cost allocation * ) 155.4 – 155.4

income from the reversal of provisions 23.1 4.6 18.5

income from the reversal of special itemsfor investment grants 0.6 0.6 0.0

income from the reversal of construction cost subsidies 5.4 6.1 – 0.7

Services 7.6 8.2 – 0.6

Sundry other income 11.2 24.3 – 13.1

517.2 296.9 220.3

* ) cost-matching income

(14) other operating income

income from the offshore liability cost allocation was rec-ognized for the first time in the fiscal year 2013 as a result of introducing a new nationwide allocation mechanism for delays and interruptions when establishing offshore grid connections. according to the new mechanism, the transmission system operator receives compensation for compensation payments made to offshore wind farm operators via a nationwide cost allocation.

income from the reversal of provisions stems from the adjustment to the valuation of external obligations and the associated reversal of various provisions.

there were no significant effects from other periods rec-ognized under other operating income in fiscal year 2013. income from currency translation amounted to eur 0.0m (prior year: eur 0.0m).



Change eur m

cost of raw materials, consumables and supplies and purchased goods – 7,444.8 – 7,776.2 331.4

cost of purchased services – 290.6 – 218.2 – 72.4

– 7,735.4 – 7,994.4 259.0

(15) Cost of materials



cost of materials contains a large volume of non-profit items:



Change eur m

eeg electricity procured – 6,284.1 – 6,343.8 59.7

Services for third parties – 907.5 – 1,113.4 205.9

Income-matching costs – 7,191.6 – 7,457.2 265.6

expenses for the grid business – 543.8 – 537.2 – 6.6

– 7,735.4 – 7,994.4 259.0

(16) personnel expenses



Change eur m

Wages and salaries – 57.0 – 51.8 – 5.2

Social security – 8.5 – 7.7 – 0.8

expenses

Pension costs – 3.2 – 3.0 – 0.2

Other benefit costs – 0.2 – 0.3 0.1

– 68.9 – 62.8 – 6.1

Average headcount for the year

1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013 Change

Wage earners 170 169 1

Salaried employees 590 533 57

760 702 58

an average of 19 trainees were employed in fiscal year 2013 (prior year: 18 trainees).

(17) Amortization, depreciation and write-downs

amortization, depreciation and write-downs in the fiscal year correspond to the normal depletion of the fixed assets; there was no cause for impairment losses.

(18) other operating expenses



Changeeur m

KWKg cost allocation * ) – 88.5 – 76.2 – 12.3

expenses pursuant to Sec. 19 (2) Stromnev * ) – 225.4 – 176.9 – 48.5

expenses from the offshore liability cost allocation * ) – 155.4 – – 155.4

Services – 28.6 – 27.1 – 1.5

Sundry other expenses – 35.4 – 31.1 – 4.3

– 533.3 – 311.3 – 222.0

* ) cost-matching income

Sundry other expenses include allocations to sundry other provisions and to impairment losses.

there were no significant effects from other periods recog-nized under other operating expenses in fiscal year 2013. expenses from currency translation amounted to eur 0.0m (prior year: eur 0.0m).

(19) Investment result



Changeeur m

income from profit transfer agreementswith affiliates 18.1 16.9 1.2

Write-downs on financial assets 0.0 – 0.3 0.3

18.1 16.6 1.5

income from the profit transfer from affiliates relates fully to 50hertz Offshore.





Changeeur m

income from securities and noncurrent loans 0.1 0.0 0.1

Other interest and similar income 9.4 8.2 1.2

thereof from affiliates 9.4 8.0 1.4

interest and similar expenses – 16.2 – 23.5 7.3

thereof to affiliates – 15.7 – 14.7 – 1.0

– 6.7 – 15.3 8.6

With regard to the discounting of provisions and unwinding the discount, eur 5.9m (prior year: eur 4.5m) relates to interest expenses and eur 0.0m (prior year: eur 0.5m) to

interest income. in accordance with Sec. 246 (2) Sentence 2 hgB, interest expenses are netted against interest income of eur 0.5m (prior year: eur 0.5m).

(20) Interest result

(21) Income taxes

income taxes of eur 4.5m (prior year: eur –4.6m) relate to assessment periods before the consolidated tax group was formed with eurogrid.

(22) other taxes

Other taxes of eur 1.1m (prior year: eur 0.5m) relate to property tax, vehicle tax and electricity tax.

(23) profit transfer

the net profit for fiscal year 2013 of eur 276,032,297.59 (prior year: eur 226,398,289.29) was transferred to euro-

grid on the basis of the profit and loss transfer agreement in place.

(24) profit appropriation

there were no transfers to/withdrawals from other revenue reserves in the fiscal year. the net income for the year has been transferred in full to the shareholder.

Other notes

notes to the cash flow statementBased on the recommendations of gaS 2 as issued by the german accounting Standards committee (gaSc), the cash flow statement shows cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities.

the cash inflow from operating activities included interest received of eur 9.4m (prior year: eur 7.5m). interest pay-ments amounted to eur 19.3m (prior year: eur 19.1m).

the cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period (eur 130.3m) consist of bank balances of eur 8.0m as well as the interest-bearing short-term deposits via the cash pool at eurogrid of eur 122.3m. in the prior period, there were liabilities from the utilization of the cash pool at euro-grid of eur 258.0m as well as bank balances of eur 1.6m.

income tax-related cash flows amounted to eur –0.1m (prior year: eur 4.3m) in fiscal year 2013.

other financial obligationsOn 31 december 2013, there was a purchase obligation for investments and maintenance measures of eur 257.5m (prior year: eur 206.2m). the purchase obligation exists solely to third parties.

as part of cross-border bottleneck management, 50hertz transmission is legally obligated to make investments to avoid future bottlenecks using income generated up to 2007. taking account of the underlying distribution system under tax law for the first-time recognition of this obligation and assuming an original total obligation of eur 122.3m until the reporting date, means that eur 84.9m has been repaid and eur 37.4m remains. the volume of agreed bottleneck income had already exceeded the actual invest-ment volume realized as of the reporting date for 50hertz transmission’s priority projects, meaning there is no further obligation for the company.

Offshore expenses between 50hertz and tennet tSO arising from the horizontal settlement gives rise to financial obligations

for 50hertz in future periods. the total amount of these future cumulative amounts comes to eur 1.3m and will be reflected in 50hertz’s network user charge calculations in the next four years following the corresponding billing by tennet tSO.

Contingent liabilitiesin connection with eurogrid issuing the bond of eur 500m on 22 October 2010, 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Offshore were named as additional guarantors. the guaran-tors are irrevocably, unconditionally and jointly liable for the punctual payment of all amounts eurogrid is to make in connection with the bond.

On 14 June 2011, 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Offshore entered a five-year syndicated loan agreement, as guarantors, with royal Bank of Scotland, n.v. as syndi-cate leader and commerzbank ag, luxembourg branch for a volume of eur 350m.

On 9 december 2011, 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Offshore issued a maximum guarantee to BnP Paribas S.a., Frankfurt/main branch, totaling eur 126m to hedge a short-term credit line from eurogrid. the maximum guarantees were increased to eur 157.5m by first addendum dated 15 July 2013.

On 17 July 2013, 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Off-shore submitted a maximum guarantee of eur 102.5m to hedge a loan agreement concluded with ing Bank, a sub-sidiary of ing diBa ag, Frankfurt am main. the agreement expired on 17 February 2014.

On 19 July 2013, 50hertz transmission and 50hertz Off-shore submitted a maximum guarantee of eur 102.5m to hedge a loan agreement concluded with coöperatieve cen-trale raiffeisen- Boerenleenbank b.a. (rabobank), utrecht, netherlands. the agreement expires on 17 march 2014.

issuing a guarantee to 50hertz Offshore resulted in an obligation of eur 4.2m which is not currently expected to be utilized.



On 25 October 2011, 50hertz transmission, as shareholder of emcc, issued a maximum guarantee on first demand of eur 3.7m to nordea Bank Finland Plc, german branch, to secure part of a loan granted to emcc.

50hertz transmission is jointly and severally liable with Stromnetz Berlin gmbh (formerly: vattenfall europe distribution Berlin gmbh and vattenfall europe Berlin ag & co. Kg/their legal successor for the obligations from the fran-chise agreement with the state of Berlin.

50hertz transmission is jointly and severally liable with Stromnetz hamburg gmbh (formerly: vattenfall europe distribution hamburg gmbh) and vattenfall europe ham-burg ag & co. Kg/their legal successor for the obligations from the franchise agreement with the Free and hanseatic city of hamburg.

as part of the spin-off of Stromnetz Berlin gmbh (formerly: vattenfall europe distribution Berlin gmbh) and vattenfall europe Berlin ag & co. Kg/their legal successor performed in 2006, legal entities involved in the spin-off are jointly and severally liable before the effective date of the spin-off as a result of the Brg [“Betriebsrentengesetz”: german company Pensions act], the liability period is ten years.

We currently do not expect any risk of claims relating to the above contingent liabilities to arise.

Audit feesthe total auditor’s fee calculated pursuant to Sec. 285 no. 17 hgB is disclosed in the consolidated financial statements of eurogrid gmbh.

Related party transactionsin the reporting period there were no transactions with related parties which were not conducted at arm’s length.

Substantial transactions in accordance with Sec. 6b (2) enWGin accordance with Sec. 6b (2) enWg, substantial transactions with affiliates and associates or with companies which belong to the same shareholders must be presented.

apart from the financing transactions mentioned in the notes to the financial statements, 50hertz did not enter into any transactions outside of its operating activities. Activity-based financial statements in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWGthe activities of 50hertz transmission belong exclusively to the field of electricity transmission. For this reason, the separate activity-based financial statements to be prepared in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWg are in line with the company’s financial statements.

Disclosures on company boardsthe members of the supervisory board and management are presented in a separate list, included as an attachment to the notes to the financial statements.

expenses for management remuneration amounted to eur 1,587k in the reporting period (prior year: eur 1,643k). it consists of fixed remuneration, performance-related remu-neration and other fixed components.

Pension obligations of eur 3.0m (prior year: eur 0.4m) relate to former members of management; a total of eur 0.5m of this is covered.

the members of the supervisory board of 50hertz transmission received eur 21k for their activities (prior year: eur 21k).

loans granted to board membersloans granted to members of the supervisory board amounted to eur 3k as of the reporting date (prior year: eur 6k). the loans bear interest at 5% p. a. and have terms of ten years. an amount of eur 3k was repaid in the reporting period.

Berlin, 18 February 2014

the management of 50hertz transmission gmbh

Boris Schucht udo giegerich dr. dirk Biermann dr. Frank golletz



Company boards

Members of the supervisory board

Daniel Dobbenichairman of the Board of eurogrid international, Braine-i’alleud (Belgium)– chairman –

peter Hausmann *member of the executive Board of the german mine, chemical and Power Workers’ union,hanover– deputy chairman –

Markus Bergerdirector of asset management, elia System Operator Sa., antwerp (Belgium)

Werner Kerschl investment director of iFm investors (uK) ltd, london (great Britain)

Andrea ludwig *electrical engineer, Berlin

Dr. lutz pscherer *electrical engineer, Berlin

*employee representative

Members of management

Boris Schucht, Berlin– chair and chief executive Officer (ceO) –

Dr. Dirk Biermann, Berlin– markets and system operations division (cmO) –

Hans-Jörg Dorny, neuenhagen bei Berlin– hr division (cPO) – (until 11 november 2013)

udo Giegerich, Berlin– commercial division (cFO) –

Dr. Frank Golletz, Dresden– technical division (ctO) –

Auditor’s report

We have issued the following audit opinion for the annual financial statements, the management report and the accounting in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWg:

“We have audited the annual financial statements, compris-ing the balance sheet, the profit-and-loss statement, the cash-flow statement and the notes to the financial state-ments, together with the bookkeeping system and the management report for 50hertz transmission gmbh, Berlin, for the financial year from 1 January to 31 december 2013. Pursuant to Sec. 6b (5) enWg, our audit of the financial statements also covered compliance with the accounting du-ties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, which requires separate accounts to be kept for activities pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg. the maintenance of the books and records and the preparation of the annual financial statements and manage-ment report in accordance with the german commercial law and compliance with the duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are the responsibility of the company’s legal repre-sentative. Our task is to express an opinion on the annual financial statements, together with the bookkeeping system, the management report and compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg based on our audit.

We conducted our audit of the annual financial statements in accordance with Sec. 317 hgB and the german gener-ally accepted standards for the audit of financial statements promulgated by the institute of Public auditors in germany (idW). those standards require that we plan and perform the audit such that misstatements and violations materially affecting the presentation of the net assets, financial position and results of operations in the annual financial statements in accordance with the principles of proper accounting and in the management report are detected with reasonable certainty and such that it can be assessed with reasonable certainty whether the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg have been met in all material respects. Know- ledge of the business activities and the economic and legal environment of the company and expectations as to possible misstatements are taken into account in the determination of audit procedures. the effectiveness of the accounting-

related internal control system and the evidence support-ing the disclosures in the books and records, the annual financial statements and the management report as well as for compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are examined primarily on a test basis within the framework of the audit. the audit includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by the legal representatives, evaluating the overall presenta-tion of the annual financial statements and the management report as well as assessing whether the carrying amounts and classification of accounts pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are reasonable and verifiable and that the consistency princi-ple has been observed. We believe that our audit provides a sufficiently certain basis for our opinion.

Our audit of the annual financial statements, together with the bookkeeping system, and the management report has not led to any reservations.

in our opinion, based on the findings of our audit, the annual financial statements comply with the legal requirements and give a true and fair view of the net assets, financial position and results of operations of the company in accordance with the principles of proper accounting. the management report is consistent with the annual financial statements, and as a whole provides a suitable view of the company’s position and suitably presents the opportunities and risks of future development.

Our audit of compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, which requires separate accounts to be kept for activities pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, has not lead to any reservations.”


ernst & young gmbhauditing company

glöckner herlitzauditor auditor


Management report and financial statements of 50Hertz Offshore GmbH

Management report 109

Financial statements 115

Statement of finacial position 115

Income statement 117

Cash flow statement 118

Statement of changes in fixed assets 119

Notes to the financial statements 121

Auditor`s report 129


Purpose of the Company

50hertz Offshore gmbh (50hertz Offshore) is a subsidiary of 50hertz transmission gmbh (50hertz transmission), which has a 100% shareholding in 50hertz Offshore. Both compa-nies have their registered offices in Berlin.

the business activities of 50hertz Offshore comprise the planning, approval, construction, acquisition, maintenance and operational management of electricity lines as well as

the associated plants and facilities for connecting offshore wind turbines/farms erected in the Baltic Sea – within the 12-mile zone/german exclusive economic Zone – to the grid. in accordance with Sec. 17d (1) enWg [“ener-giewirtschaftsgesetz”: german energy industry act], the obligation for connecting offshore wind farms to the grid primarily rests with the transmission system operator 50hertz transmission.

Economic report

overall economic and industry-related conditionsthe downward trend in general economic development in germany was halted over the course of 2013 as the overall economic situation stabilized. Following a period of stagna-tion of the gross domestic product (gdP) at the beginning of the year – caused also by the cold weather – the economy picked up moderately. Positive growth rates in the second and third quarter of 2013 led to a price-adjusted increase in gdP on the prior year of 0.4%, or 0.5% adjusted for seasonal effects. this was primarily attributable to increased consumer spending by both public bodies and private households, while capital expenditures – adjusted for price effects – were down. net exports had a negative impact on gdP. this was caused by a slowdown in exports while imports increased at a greater rate by comparison.

the economic outlook for 2014 is viewed optimistically, which is why the federal government in its fall outlook forecast a price-adjusted increase in gdP of 1.7% in comparison to the figures forecast for 2013.

electricity consumption in 2013 decreased by 1.8% on the prior year, while the arbeitsgemeinschaft energiebilanzen e. v. (working group on energy balances) had predicted a year-on-year increase in total energy consumption in ger-many of 2.6% for 2013. the most important cause for this is deemed to be the increased demand for heat energy as a result of the long winter and cool spring. the use of renew-

able energies again increased by just under 6% on the prior year. While hydropower and wind power across germany recorded a decrease of 2.5% and 2% in 2013, respectively, photovoltaic and biomass increased their share of electricity generation by 7% and 11%, respectively. the development of the economy as a whole as well as electricity consump-tion did not have any significant influence on 50hertz Offshore’s earnings.

the third act revising the legislation governing the energy Sector entered into force on 28 december 2012. the new statutory regulations provide for a change from the previous system of connecting to the grid based on the offshore wind farm meeting the criteria towards structured grid expansion. in addition, the transmission system operators prepared an offshore grid development plan for the first time and submit-ted a draft dated 2 march 2013 to the Federal network agency responsible for approving the plan.

the offshore grid development plan will be confirmed by the Federal network agency at the beginning of January 2014. the offshore grid development plan considers connections in the starter network that have already been established (Baltic 1 offshore wind farm) and those that are being established (Baltic 2 offshore wind farm). in addition, the deci-sive 10-year lead scenario for the Baltic Sea to establish two direct-current connection lines each for the Westlich adlergrund cluster in 2017 and 2018. While the approved

Management report

offshore grid development plan forms the basis for the construction of cluster connection lines, the decision as to which wind farm is to be connected to each cluster is part of a downstream process for which the Federal network agency is responsible. this process should in each case be carried out directly after the connecting line is approved.

in order to ensure the planned connection lines are both geographically and technically feasible, the Federal maritime and hydrographic agency [“Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und hydrografie”] also drafted a first-time offshore federal plan for the Baltic Sea. in addition to standardized technical provisions, it also provides for space for cable routes and platform locations. the final first offshore federal plan for the Baltic Sea is expected for the first half of 2014.

Business developmentafter production work began on the undersea and land ca-bles for the 150 kilovolt (kv) grid connection of the offshore wind farm Baltic 2 in the prior year, important sections of the three undersea cables in total – two cables between the Baltic 1 and Baltic 2 transformer platforms as well as one cable between the Baltic 1 platform and the landing point – as well as the land cable route to the Bentwisch transformer substation. Furthermore, a further milestone for connecting Baltic 2 to the grid was reached in concluding the agree-

ment on the joint use of the Baltic 2 transformer platform. the commissioning of the grid connection is planned for 2014, depending on when production of the Baltic 2 off-shore wind farm begins.

there are further grid connection projects currently in prepa-ration. in particular, applications for the required approvals for a total of six 220 kv cable systems were filed to connect the offshore wind farm north east of rügen island to the lubmin transformer substation. investments in fiscal year 2013 amounted to some eur 154m, down approximately eur 109m on the prior-year figure. they primarily relate to connecting Baltic 2 to the grid.

Net assets, financial position and results of operations

the company operates exclusively in the field of electricity transmission as defined by Sec. 6b (3) enWg. For this rea-son, the separate activity-based financial statements to be prepared correspond to the company’s financial statements.

inflows and income as well as outflows and expenses in connection with the settlement of the offshore liability cost allocation are recognized in 50hertz transmission’s annual financial statements.

Results of operationsin the past fiscal year, the company generated almost all of its revenue from the remuneration received from grant-ing rights of use of its assets (completed assets and assets under construction) to 50hertz transmission amounting to a total of eur 25,155.5k (prior year: eur 23,856.2k).the increase in revenue is primarily attributable to the rise in the company’s fixed assets as a consequence of expand-ing investing activities. in addition to revenue, the com-pany generated other operating income of eur 15,143.8k (prior year: eur 13,500.1k); this is primarily from allocating expense-matching costs to the shareholder.

management rePOrt OF 50hertZ OFFShOre gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 110


Income statement 2013eur k

2012 eur k

Changeeur k

revenue and income 40,361.1 37,419,4 2,941.7

Operating expenses – 12,915.2 – 12,856.8 – 58.4

interest result – 9,343.8 – 7,671.1 – 1,672.7

Result from ordinary activ 18,102.1 16,891.5 1,120.6

Profit transfer to the shareholder – 18,102.1 – 16,891.5 – 1,210.6

Operating expenses amount to eur 12,915.2k (prior year: eur 12,856.8k). in addition to amortization and depreciation incurred on non-current assets (eur 7,053.4k), significant items also include costs for insurance (eur 2,183.9k) as well as for inspection and maintenance services (eur 1,945.0k).

under the regulatory framework, a portion of operating ex-penses and the interest result represent expense-matching costs, initially allocated to the shareholder which in turn thenallocates a portion of these to the other transmission system operators. the allocated expense-matching costs represent other operating income for the company.

Financing requirements increased in line with investing activities, which in turn led to increased interest expenses, thereby increasing the overall negative interest result.

the year-on-year increase in the result from ordinary activi-ties is primarily attributable to the eur 2,941.7k increase in revenue and income. this was counterbalanced by a much lower increase in operating expenses; by contrast, the substantial drop in the interest result only reduced the increase in other operating income by around 50%.

the profit generated for the year was transferred in full to the shareholder on account of the domination and profit and loss transfer agreement in place.

net assets and financial positionthe company’s assets comprise completed assets, assets under construction and prepayments on assets under construction. the sharp increase in fixed assets on the prior year is primarily attributable to the progress made in the grid connection projects (underwater and land cable) for the offshore wind farm Baltic 2. With regard to the ongoing planning and realization of grid connections, the share of total assets accounted for by fixed assets was around 99%. the equity to fixed assets ratio came to 40% (prior year: 41%).

Statement of financial position 31 Dec 2013eur k

31 Dec 2012 eur k

Changeeur k

Assets

Fixed assets 498,916.6 352,286.9 146,629.7

current assets (including prepaid expenses) 3,606.5 3,534.1 72.4

502,523.1 355,821.0 146,702.1

equity and liabilities

equity 201,020.1 146,020.1 55,000.0

long-term liabilities 271,342.9 176,342.9 95,000.0

medium and short-term liabilities 30,160.1 33,458.0 – 3,297.9

502,523.1 355,821.0 146,702.1

Statement of cash flows (condensed) 2013eur k

2012eur k

Change eur k

cash flow from operating activities 27,624.4 32,686.6 – 5,062.2

cash flow from investing activities – 153,683.1 – 109,242.3 – 44,440.8

cash flow from financing activities 131,897.2 63,108.5 68,789.4

Change in cash and cash equivalents 5,839.2 – 13,447.2 19,286.4

cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 2,848.7 – 2,990.5 5,839.2

Financing and investment activities were primarily performed through equity and a shareholder loan. a further eur 55,000k was added to the capital reserves by the shareholder.

the cash pool agreement in place with eurogrid gmbh (sole shareholder of 50hertz transmission, hereinafter referred to as eurogrid) was used for short-term bridge financing. the company was secured at all times due to its inclusion in the cash pool.

cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period amount-ed to eur 2,848.7k (prior year: eur –2,990.5k), relating entirely to the receivables due to eurogrid under the cash poolarrangement (prior year: liability due from eurogrid).

the company’s financing was secured throughout the entire fiscal year 2013. 50hertz transmission issued non-current shareholder loans of eur 271,342.9k (prior year: eur 176,342.9k) to 50hertz Offshore. the cash pool with eurogrid also continued throughout the entire fiscal year.there is a tax group with 50hertz transmission for income tax and vat purposes.



Forecast, opportunity and risk report

Forecast reportFurther business development will primarily be determined by the progress made in preparing for the offshore wind farm projects. the commissioning of the grid connection for the Baltic 2 offshore wind farm is planned for the fiscal year 2014. investing activities will also continue to be high as a result of additional grid connection projects. this is also linked to an increase in recognized assets, the financing of which will be secured by agreements already in place. Operational management, such as maintenance and repair services, will be driven forward and developed further in the coming years.

50hertz Offshore’s result from ordinary activities for 2014 will most likely be significantly higher than the 2013 result from ordinary activities (eur 18.1m). this forecast is mainly based on the following premises:

– increased investment volume, resulting in growth in revenue

– connecting the offshore wind farms to the grid in both a timely and compliant manner

– Ongoing high cost discipline in business processes

opportunities and risks50hertz Offshore is included in the risk management process of 50hertz transmission. this is characterized by central monitoring of all the company’s main risks. the risks stemming from the construction of the grid connection are determined, recorded in a standardized manner, evaluated and monitored using the shareholder’s risk guideline. the assessment of potential losses and the likelihood of their occurrence is based on scenarios.

Opportunities for the company lie in the growing investment activities for connecting offshore wind parks to the grid and the associated opportunity to generate adequate returns.

Planning, construction and operation of the grid connections of offshore wind farms is a business area with uncertainties and technical challenges. For example, in the course of theBaltic 1 project, it became clear how dependent it was on weather and offshore ground conditions. in addition to laying the cables, manufacturing them too also has considerableinfluence on whether the grid correction is made in both a timely and high-quality manner. there is only a small number of potential suppliers for key components needed to connect the farms to the grid and they do not have many years of experience yet.

although the amendment to the enWg limits liability of the transmission system operator, barriers have been added to the law to prevent transmission system operators causingeconomic damage. For example, the transmission system operator pays a deductible in certain cases and only a portion can be transferred to the suppliers. this caused the requirements providing for strict and effective cost manage-ment with sufficient and legally watertight documentation to increase substantially.

uncertainty regarding approval of an adequate level of income to cover the costs of the operating phase and the con-ditional ex-post review of investing activities by the regulatory authorities in terms of appropriateness, scope and extent pose a risk for the company. this is confronted by constantly monitoring the costs and weighing up the costs and benefits.

overall picture of the economic situationthe year-on-year rise in the result from operating activities in fiscal year 2013 is primarily due to the increase in capital ex-penditures on property, plant and equipment. Furthermore, other operating income rose as a result of the increased

allocation of expense-matching costs to the shareholder. the financial obligations due in fiscal year 2013 were covered at all times by the available liquidity and the shareholder loan.

Overall, there was no threat to the company’s continuing existence in fiscal year 2013 either from individual risks or an accumulation of individual risks. Furthermore, there are no risks to the company’s continued existence as a going concern for the subsequent year 2014 taking into account the measures taken as well as the insurance cover in place.

Subsequent events

no events of significant importance occurred from the time of the reporting date to the issue date of 50hertz Offshore’s financial statements.


the management

udo giegerich dr. Frank golletz



Statement of financial positionASSetS note 31 Dec 2013

eur k31 Dec 2012

eur k

non-current assets (1)

Property, plant and equipment 498,916.6 352,286.9

498,916.6 352,286.9

Current assets (2)

trade receivables 393.6 345.8

receivables from affiliates 3,017.9 509.0

Other assets 120.0 2,666.1

3,531.5 3,520.9

prepaid expenses (3) 75.0 13.2

502,523.1 355,821.0

Financial statements

eQuItY AnD lIABIlItIeS note 31 Dec 2013eur k

31 Dec 2012eur k

equity (4)

issued capital 1,000.0 1,000.0

capital reserves 200,000.0 145,000.0

Other revenue reserves 20.1 20.1

201,020.1 146,020.1

provisions (5)

Other provisions 14,067.0 3,374.5

14,067.0 3,374.5

liabilities (6)

trade payables 16,066.8 27,075.0

liabilities to affiliates 271,369.2 179,333.4

Other liabilities 0.0 18.0

287,436.0 206,426.4

502,523.1 355,821.0

Financial StatementS OF 50hertZ OFFShOre gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 116


Income statementnote 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013

eur k1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012

eur k

revenue (7) 25,217.3 23,919.3

Other operating income (8) 15,143.8 13,500.1

cost of materials (9) – 2,199.0 – 1,744.9

amortization, depreciation and impairment (10) – 7,053.4 – 6,985.9

Other operating expenses (11) – 3,662.8 – 4,126.0

interest result (12) – 9,343.8 – 7,671.1

Result from ordinary activities 18,102.1 16,891.5

expenses from profit/loss transfer – 18,102.1 – 16,891.5

net profit for the year – –

Cash flow statement1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013

eur k1 Jan to 31 Dec 2012

eur kChange

eur k

net income for the year prior to profit/loss transfer 18,102.1 16,891.5 1,210.6

Write-downs of non-current assets 7,053.4 6,985.9 67.5

increase in provisions (prior year: decrease) 10,692.5 – 1,573.1 12,265.6

decrease in receivables and other assets (prior year: increase) 2,776.3 – 2,853.4 5,629.7

decrease in liabilities and other equity and liabilities (prior year: increase)

– 10,999.9

13,235.7

– 24,235.6

Cash flow from operating activities 27,624.4 32,686.6 – 5,062.2

cash paid for investments in property, plant and equipment – 153,683.1 – 109,242.3 – 44,440.8

Cash flow from investing activities – 153,683.1 – 109,242.3 – 44,440.8

cash received from equity contributions 55,000.0 37,000.0 18,000.0

cash received from shareholder loans 95,000.0 43,000.0 52,000.0

cash paid for the profit/loss transfer – 18,102.1 – 16,891.5 – 1,210.6

Cash flow from financing activities 131,897.9 63,108.5 68,789.4

Change in cash and cash equivalents 5,839.2 – 13,447.2 19,286.4

cash and cash equivalents at the beginning the period – 2,990.5 10,456.7 – 13,447.2

Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period 2,848.7 – 2,990.5 5,839.2



Statement of changes in fixed assetsCost Amortization, depreciation and impairment Carrying amount

1 Jan 2013 eur k

additions eur k

reclassificationseur k

disposals eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

1 Jan 2013 eur k

additions eur k


disposals eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

31 dec 2012 eur k


land, land rights and buildings includingbuildings on third-party land 28.0 2,152.2 307.4 – 2,487.6 0.3 5.0 – – 5.3 2,482.3 27.7

technical equipment and machinery 140,774.6 342.3 909.9 – 142,026.8 9,504.5 6,967.6 – – 16,472.1 125,554.7 131,270.1

Other equipment, furniture and fixtures 633.1 – 25.0 – 658.1 131.8 80.8 – – 212.6 445.5 501.3

Prepayments and assets under construction 220,487.8 151,188.6 – 1,242.3 – 370,434.1 – – – – – 370,434.1 220,487.8

361,923.5 153,683.1 – – 515,606.6 9,636.6 7,053.4 – – 16,690.0 498,916.6 352,286.9

non-current assets 361,923.5 153,683.1 – – 515,606.6 9,636.6 7,053.4 – – 16,690.0 498,916.6 352,286.9

Cost Amortization, depreciation and impairment Carrying amount

1 Jan 2013 eur k

additions eur k


disposals eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

1 Jan 2013 eur k

additions eur k


disposals eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

31 dec 2013 eur k

31 dec 2012 eur k


land, land rights and buildings includingbuildings on third-party land 28.0 2,152.2 307.4 – 2,487.6 0.3 5.0 – – 5.3 2,482.3 27.7

technical equipment and machinery 140,774.6 342.3 909.9 – 142,026.8 9,504.5 6,967.6 – – 16,472.1 125,554.7 131,270.1

Other equipment, furniture and fixtures 633.1 – 25.0 – 658.1 131.8 80.8 – – 212.6 445.5 501.3

Prepayments and assets under construction 220,487.8 151,188.6 – 1,242.3 – 370,434.1 – – – – – 370,434.1 220,487.8

361,923.5 153,683.1 – – 515,606.6 9,636.6 7,053.4 – – 16,690.0 498,916.6 352,286.9

non-current assets 361,923.5 153,683.1 – – 515,606.6 9,636.6 7,053.4 – – 16,690.0 498,916.6 352,286.9



General

the company is registered in the commercial register of charlottenburg district court under hrB no. 108780. the purpose of the company is the construction, acquisition, maintenance, operational management and operation of electricity lines as well as the associated plants and facilities for connecting offshore wind turbines/farms erected in the Baltic Sea to an electricity transmission or distribution grid. the company primarily commissions the services of its shareholder 50hertz transmission gmbh (50hertz transmission).

a domination and profit and loss transfer agreement is in place between 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz transmis-sion. in fiscal year 2013, there was a tax group with 50hertz transmission for income tax and vat purposes.

the financial statements of 50hertz Offshore were prepared in accordance with the provisions of the hgB [“handelsgesetzbuch”: german commercial code] and the supple-mentary provisions of the gmbhg [“gesetz betreffend die gesellschaften mit beschränkter haftung”: german limited liability companies act] as well as in observation of the enWg [“energiewirtschaftsgesetz”: german energy industry act]. the fiscal year is the calendar year. all amounts are in thousands of euros (eur k). in the interest of clarity, items have been combined in the consolidated income statement and in the statement of financial position and disclosed separately and explained in the notes. the income state-ment has been prepared using the nature of expense method.

the company is a medium-sized corporation in accordance with Sec. 267 hgB.

50hertz Offshore is included in the consolidated financial statements of eurogrid gmbh (eurogrid), with its registered office in Berlin, and in the consolidated financial statements of elia System Operator Sa/nv, with its registered office in Brussels, Belgium. the consolidated financial statements of elia System Operator Sa/nv with the largest group of companies can be obtained from elia System Operator

Sa/nv, Boulevard de l´empereur 20, 1000 Brussels, Belgium. the consolidated financial statements prepared by eurogrid cover the smallest group of companies and can be obtained from the Bundesanzeiger [german Fede- ral gazette] (www.bundesanzeiger.de). the company is registered in the commercial register of charlottenburg district court under hrB no. 130427 B.

Notes to the financial statements

http://www.bundesanzeiger.de

ASSetSFixed assetsProperty, plant and equipment are stated at cost less depreciation. Borrowing costs are not included.

amortization is recognized on a straight-line basis. the useful lives are based on expected life cycles determined for each asset with regard to technical equipment and in particular offshore facilities (20 years).

impairments are only recorded when the asset needs to be written down to a lower net realizable value.

Separately usable moveable fixed assets costing less than eur 150 that have a limited life are recognized immediately in profit or loss. assets costing between eur 150 and eur 1,000 are posted to a collective item pursuant to Sec. 6 (2a) eStg [“einkommensteuergesetz”: german income tax act] in the year of acquisition, also for the statutory accounts. the collective item is written off in installments of one fifth in the year in which it is recognized and each of the following four years.

Current assetsreceivables and other assets are stated at their nominal value or net realizable value, whichever is lower. all recogniz-able individual risks and the general credit risk are account-ed for by appropriate allowances.

prepaid expensesPrepaid expenses refer to expenses of the reporting date, insofar as they concern future periods.

eQuItY AnD lIABIlItIeSequitythe issued capital is measured at nominal value.

provisionsin the calculation of provisions, all recognizable risks and uncertain liabilities were taken into account as required according to prudent business judgment and recorded at the settlement value necessary. Provisions with a term of more than one year are discounted at the average market interest rate prevailing over the past seven fiscal years for instruments of similar terms that is issued and published by deutsche Bundesbank in accordance with Sec. 253 Sentence 2 hgB.

liabilitiesliabilities are recognized at the settlement value deemed necessary.

Deferred taxes50hertz Offshore is included in the consolidated tax group for income tax purposes of 50hertz transmission. deferred taxes arising due to temporary or quasi-permanent differ-ences between the carrying amounts of assets, liabilities, prepaid expenses and deferred income in the statutory accounts and their tax carrying amounts or due to tax loss carryforwards are determined at the level of the controlling entity.

InCoMe StAteMent the company does not employ any personnel of its own: no personnel expenses are therefore recognized.

Accounting and valuation methods

nOteS tO the Financial StatementS OF 50hertZ OFFShOre gmBh AnnuAl RepoRt 2013 • 122


31 Dec 2013

eur k

thereof due> one year

eur k

31 Dec 2012

eur k

thereof due> one year

eur k

trade receivables 393.6 – 345.8 –

receivables from affiliates 3,017.9 – 509.0 –

thereof from shareholder 169.2 – 509.0 –

Other assets 120.0 – 2,666.1 –

3,531.5 – 3,520.9 –

(1) Fixed assets

the statement of changes in fixed assets provides an overview of amortization, depreciation and impairment.

Property, plant and equipment was characterized, among other things, by the construction of a new warehouse at

Notes to the statement of financial position

(2) Current assets

receivables from affiliates mainly comprised receivables from the cash pool of eur 2,848.7k (prior year: eur 0.0k) with eurogrid in the fiscal year.

as of 31 december 2013, trade receivables and payables with the shareholder as well as with an affiliate totaling eur 5.0k (prior year: eur 0.0k) were offset against each other.

Other assets primarily contain a payment made to a supplier.

(3) prepaid expenses

this item mainly contains prepaid insurance contributions.

(4) equity

the company’s issued capital of eur 1,000k is fully paid in and is held in full by 50hertz transmission. the shareholder passed a resolution on 17 december 2013 to make a con-tribution of eur 55,000k to the capital reserves in accord-

ance with Sec. 272 (2) no. 4 hgB which was performed before the end of the fiscal year 2013. as of year-end, the capital reserve amounted to eur 200,000k.

the port of rostock to store offshore spare parts in the fiscal year. the continued sharp increase in prepayments and assets under construction on the prior year mainly reflects the progress made in the grid connection projects for the offshore wind farm Baltic 2 as well as for additional offshore projects.

31 Dec 2013eur k

31 Dec 2012eur k

Change

Other provisions 14,067.0 3,374.5 10,692.5

thereof:

Outstanding invoices 12,881.1 2,195.4 10,685.7

dues, fees, contributions 926.0 911.0 15.0

litigation risks 34.3 133.0 – 98.7

restoration provisions 185.6 102.8 82.8

Sundry other provisions 40.0 32.3 7.7

14,067.0 3,374.5 10,692.5

31 Dec 2013eur k

31 Dec 2012eur k


due in > 5 years


due in > 5 years

trade payables 16,066.8 16,066.8 – 27,075.0 27,075.0 –

liabilities to affiliates 271,369.2 26.3 271,342.9 179,333.4 2,990.5 176,342.9

thereof to shareholder 271,342.9 – 271,342.9 176,342.9 – 176,342.9

Other liabilities 0.0 0.0 – 18.0 – –

thereof from taxes – – – 18.0 – –

287,436.0 16,093.1 271,342.9 206,426.4 30,065.5 176,342.9

(5) provisions

the sharp increase of the provisions for outstanding invoices is primarily due to the progress made in the grid connection

projects for the offshore wind farm Baltic 2 as well as for additional offshore projects.

(6) liabilities

liabilities to affiliates relate almost exclusively to a long-term loan taken out by the company of eur 271,342.9k (prior year: eur 176,342.9k).

there were no liabilities from the cash pool as of 31 decem-ber 2013 (prior year: eur 2,990.5k).

as of 31 december 2013, trade receivables and payables with the shareholder as well as with an affiliate totaling eur 5.0k (prior year: eur 0.0k) were offset against each other.



1 Jan to 31 Dec 2013eur k


Change

allocating expense-matching costs to the shareholder 14,931.3 12,802.5 2,128.8

Sundry other operating income 212.5 697.6 – 485.1

15,143.8 13,500.1 1,643.7



Change

expenses for raw materials, consumables andsupplies and purchased goods

– 254.0

– 332.8

78.8

expenses for purchased services – 1,945.0 – 1,412.1 – 532.9

– 2,199.0 – 1,744.9 – 454.1

(7) Revenue

revenue includes the return on investment, amortization, depreciation and impairment and trade tax. revenue from the shareholder was generated entirely from granting rights

Notes to the income statement

of use of network facilities for connecting offshore wind farms to the grid.

(8) other operating income

the allocation of non-capitalizable offshore costs to the shareholder is recorded as a key component under other operating income.

Sundry other operating income primarily contains income from the reversal of provisions of eur 118.8k (prior year: eur 621.4k).

(9) Cost of materials

expenses for raw materials, consumables and supplies primarily contain expenses for the procurement of electricity. expenses for purchased services mainly include expenses for third-party services.



Change

Services – 881.5 – 924.8 43.3

legal and consulting fees – 161.3 – 54.8 – 106.5

insurance contributions – 2,183.9 – 2,072.3 – 111.6

rent and leases – 109.2 – 683.3 574.1

Sundry other expenses – 326.9 – 390.8 63.9

– 3,662.8 – 4,126.0 463.2



Change

Other interest and similar income 11.4 8.3 3.1

thereof from affiliates 11.4 8.3 3.1

interest and similar expenses – 9,355.2 – 7,679.4 – 1,675.8

thereof to affiliates – 9,345.8 – 7,676.0 – 1,669.8

– 9,343.8 – 7,671.1 – 1,672.7

(10) Amortization, depreciation and write-downs

depreciation of property, plant and equipment came to eur 7,053.4k in the fiscal year (prior year: eur 6,985.9k); this

mainly relates to the grid connection of the Baltic 1 offshore wind farm.

(11) other operating expenses

(12) Interest result

interest income from and interest expenses to affiliates arise from the utilization of the cash pooling system and the granting of a long-term loan from the shareholder.

the remaining interest expenses of eur 9.4k (prior year: eur 3.4k) relate to unwinding the discount on the long-term provisions.



notes to the statement of cash flowsBased on the recommendations of gaS 2 as issued by the german accounting Standards committee (gaSc), the cash flow statement shows cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities.

the cash inflow from operating activities included interest received of eur 11.4k (prior year: eur 8.3k). cash paid for interest amounted to eur 9,345.8k (prior year: eur 7,676.0k).

cash and cash equivalents at the end of the period amount-ed to eur 2,848.7k (prior year: eur –2,990.5k), relating entirely to the receivable (prior year: liability) due to eurogrid under the cash pool arrangement.

there were no income tax-related cash flows as a result of the tax group with 50hertz transmission.

other financial obligationsOn 31 december 2013, there was a purchase obligation for investments and maintenance measures towards third par-ties of eur 332,340k (prior year: eur 329,571k). there was no purchase obligation towards affiliates.

Contingent liabilitiesin connection with eurogrid issuing the bond of eur 500m on 22 October 2010, 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz trans-mission were named as additional guarantors. the guaran-tors are irrevocably, unconditionally and jointly liable for the punctual payment of all amounts eurogrid is to make as part of the bond.

On 14 June 2011, 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz transmis-sion entered a five-year syndicated loan agreement, as guar-antors, with the royal Bank of Scotland, n.v. as syndicate leader and commerzbank ag, luxembourg branch for a volume of eur 350m.

On 9 december 2011, 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz transmission issued a maximum guarantee to BnP Paribas S.a.,

Other notes

Frankfurt/main branch, totaling eur 126m to hedge a short- term credit line of eurogrid. the maximum guarantees were increased to eur 157m by first addendum dated 15 July 2013.

On 17 July 2013, 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz transmis-sion submitted a maximum guarantee of eur 102.5m to secure a loan agreement concluded with ing Bank, a sub-sidiary of ing diBa ag, Frankfurt am main. the agreement expires on 17 February 2014.

On 19 July 2013, 50hertz Offshore and 50hertz transmis-sion submitted a maximum guarantee of eur 102.5m to secure a loan agreement concluded with coöperatieve cen-trale raiffeisen- Boerenleenbankb.a. (rabobank), utrecht, netherlands. the agreement expires on 17 march 2014.

We currently do not expect any risk of claims relating to the above contingent liabilities.

Audit feesthe disclosures for the total auditor’s fee calculated pursu-ant to Sec. 285 no. 17 hgB are made in the consolidated financial statements of eurogrid.

Substantial transactions in accordance with Sec. 6b (2) enWGin accordance with Sec. 6b (2) enWg, substantial transac-tions with affiliates and associates or with companies which belong to the same shareholders must be presented. in the reporting year, the company did not enter into any transac-tions outside of its operating activities.

the volume of services utilized by 50hertz transmission in fiscal year 2013 (service and general contractor agreement) amounted to eur 9,051.1k (prior year: eur 7,603.2k).

Activity-based financial statements in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWG the activities of 50hertz Offshore belong exclusively to the field of electricity transmission. For this reason, the sepa-

rate activity-based financial statements to be prepared in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWg are in line with the company’s financial statements.

Disclosures on company boardsMembers of management udo giegerich, Berlin, commercial divisiondr. Frank golletz, dresden, technical division

the general managers did not receive any remuneration from the company.


50hertz Offshore gmbh

udo giegerich dr. Frank golletz



We have issued the following audit opinion for the annual fi-nancial statements, the management report and the account-ing in accordance with Sec. 6b (3) enWg:

“We have audited the annual financial statements, comprising the balance sheet, the profit-and-loss statement, the cash-flow statement and the notes to the financial statements, together with the bookkeeping system and the management report for 50hertz Offshore gmbh, Berlin, for the financial year from 1 January to 31 december 2013. Pursuant to Sec. 6b (5) enWg, our audit of the financial statements also covered compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, which requires separate accounts to be kept for activities pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg. the maintenance of the books and records and the preparation of the annual financial statements and management report in accordance with the german commercial law and compliance with the duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are the responsibility of the company’s legal representative. Our task is to express an opinion on the annual financial statements, together with the bookkeeping system, the management report and compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg based on our audit.

We conducted our audit of the annual financial statements in accordance with Sec. 317 hgB and the german generally accepted standards for the audit of financial statements prom-ulgated by the institute of Public auditors in germany (idW). those standards require that we plan and perform the audit such that misstatements and violations materially affecting the presentation of the net assets, financial position and results of operations in the annual financial statements in accordance with the principles of proper accounting and in the manage-ment report are detected with reasonable certainty and such that it can be assessed with reasonable certainty whether the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg have been met in all material respects. Knowledge of the business activi-ties and the economic and legal environment of the company and expectations as to possible misstatements are taken into account in the determination of audit procedures. the effectiveness of the accounting-related internal control system

and the evidence supporting the disclosures in the books and records, the annual financial statements and the management report as well as for compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are examined primarily on a test basis within the framework of the audit. the audit includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by the legal representatives, evaluating the overall presentation of the annual financial statements and the management report as well as assessing whether the carrying amounts and classification of accounts pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg are reasonable and verifiable and that the consist-ency principle has been observed. We believe that our audit provides a sufficiently certain basis for our opinion.

Our audit of the annual financial statements, together with the bookkeeping system, and the management report has not led to any reservations.

in our opinion, based on the findings of our audit, the annual financial statements comply with the legal requirements and give a true and fair view of the net assets, financial position and results of operations of the company in accordance with the principles of proper accounting. the management report is consistent with the annual financial statements, and as a whole provides a suitable view of the company’s position and suitably presents the opportunities and risks of future develop-ment.

Our audit of compliance with the accounting duties pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, which requires separate accounts to be kept for activities pursuant to Sec. 6b (3) enWg, has not lead to any reservations.”


ernst & young gmbhauditing company

glöckner herlitzauditor auditor

Auditor’s report

Imprint

Publisher 50Hertz Transmission GmbH Eichenstrasse 3 A · 12435 Berlin T + 49 ( 0 ) 30 5150-0 F + 49 ( 0 ) 30 5150-4477 info@ 50 hertz.com

Board of Directors Boris Schucht – Chair and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) –

Dr. Dirk Biermann– Chief Officer for Markets and System Operations (CMO) –

Udo Giegerich– Chief Financial Officer (CFO) –

Dr. Frank Golletz – Chief Technical Officer (CTO) –

Concept and design Heimrich & Hannot GmbH Stralauer Allee 2 · D -10245 Berlin Telephone +49 30 308780-40 Fax +49 30 308780-66

Photography Andreas Teich 50Hertz archive Frank Wölffing Jan Pauls (including titles and chapter separators)

Editorial office Olivier Feix (responsible individual) Bianca Berger Silja Bilz

Printing DBM Druckhaus Berlin-Mitte GmbH Wilhelm-Kabus-Strasse 21– 35 · D -10829 Berlin

An Elia Group company

50 Hertz Transmission GmbH Eichenstrasse 3 A · 12435 Berlin T + 49 ( 0 ) 30 5150-0 F + 49 ( 0 ) 30 5150-4477 info@ 50 hertz.com

www.50hertz.com

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