Munich, 29 April 2025 – Although many German installers are only familiar with home energy management systems (HEMS) in theory, they have already recognized the significant added value it brings to end users. The high potential in the use of HEMS is largely due to a major change in the technology landscape: While systems from a sole manufacturer used to suffice for the mostly rare residential energy systems in the field, the composition of these household systems has become less homogeneous in recent years – customers often use different manufacturers and want to use them efficiently through intelligent integration. Regulatory requirements, including Paragrph 14a of the Energy Industry Act (EnWG) or Paragraph 9 of the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG), also pose major challenges for the technologies and make their functionality significantly more complex. A recent survey conducted by gridX, Europe's leading smart energy company, and KOSTAL, a leading German manufacturer of photovoltaic (PV) inverters, of 336 German installer companies has generated exciting insights into installers’ affinity for HEMS, market trends and innovations and current regulatory requirements. The two companies aimed to uncover the current positioning of the HEMS market and where there still may be room for improvement.
Estimated value outweighs experience
In their survey, gridX and KOSTAL asked respondents to share their practical experience and knowledge of smart energy management at the household level. Around 26 percent of all respondents stated that they had already installed a HEMS. However, almost 89% were already familiar with HEMS and 56% saw great added value in using the technology. “For us, these results are strong signals that Germany is ready for a nationwide introduction of HEMS – at both the installer and user level,” says Tim Steinmetz, Managing Director and Chief Growth Officer at gridX.
Knowledge deficits in current regulatory requirements and trends
The survey also revealed areas where there is a need to catch up, including, for example, knowledge of current regulatory requirements or trending topics, such as dynamic tariffs. Only 27% of all surveyed installers would rate themselves as familiar or very familiar with dynamic tariffs. Around half (47%), on the other hand, declared themselves unfamiliar or not at all familiar with the topic. When asked about Paragraph 14a of the Energy Industry Act, which has had a binding impact on users of controllable energy-consuming assets since January 1, 2024, 44% of all respondents said they had a good understanding of the content of the paragraph (familiar or very familiar). Around one-third (32%) felt that they had little to no familiarity in this area. "The fact that we continue to struggle with such a lack of knowledge in these areas, especially on important topics such as dynamic tariffs, is a symptom of the sluggish smart meter rollout in Germany. This is definitely something we need to resolve as quickly as possible," Steinmetz demands.
Investment costs still the biggest obstacle for HEMS installations
gridX and KOSTAL also identified in their survey why people still often decide against a HEMS: Assumed high investment costs of equipping a household with renewable energy resources and an energy management system remains the dominant factor. In addition, a perceived complexity of the topic around renewables and home energy management, as well as fears of reliability and compatibility, still deter a large number of both potential users and installation companies. The considerable effort involved in smart and efficient home energy management, especially in the early days, was an additional inhibiting factor for private individuals. gridX and KOSTAL now want to build on the results of their collaboration under ‘Ready for gridX’ and work together to overcome the reservations of installers and homeowners through targeted information. Seamless interoperability between the manufacturer and gridX technology, as well as a simplified HEMS installation, for example via plug-and-play solutions, even for existing systems already installed in the home, removes this complexity for end customers and thus eliminates a significant barrier to the energy transition.
The detailed survey and whitepaper can be downloaded here
gridX is Europe's leading smart energy company based in Aachen and Munich. With its modular EMS XENON, gridX enables manufacturer-independent optimization and management of distributed energy resources. With XENON, partners can build, scale and adapt energy management solutions faster and more efficiently than ever before, always meeting evolving market demands. E-mobility partners can install more and higher power charge points at sites without the need for costly grid extensions. Partners in home energy management minimize costs and complexity by offering end customers holistic smart energy management built for the future.
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