Unlocking Potential: Data Spaces in the Energy Sector

Data Spaces are emerging as a key architectural paradigm for sovereign, cross-organizational data exchange based on shared rules, interoperable standards, and decentralized control. In the energy sector, this becomes particularly relevant as the rapid integration of distributed energy resources, smart metering systems, and new flexibility assets increases the need for scalable orchestration and trustworthy data sharing across many heterogeneous actors.
This talk reports on the technical workshop “Unlocking Potential: Data Spaces in the Energy Sector” held on 17 September 2025 at the 14th DACH+ Conference on Energy Informatics in Aachen, and presents results from the project “Testfeldumgebung im Rahmen des ‘Use Case Energie’ zum Aufbau des Dateninstituts der Bundesregierung” for the Future Energy Lab at dena. We introduce core Data Space concepts and highlight how catalog-based discovery, standardized interface descriptions, and reusable governance mechanisms reduce today’s friction in establishing data partnerships.
We showcase implemented capabilities and use cases from the dena test field along two epics: (1) proof of consumption and the linkage of charging events with PV generation as well as contract portability for public charging, and (2) access to and provision of iMSys measurement data for forecasting and dashboards, including aggregation and remote control of a wind turbine via Data Space mechanisms. Based on interactive discussions, we summarize practical expectations and requirements voiced by participants, including intuitive user interfaces, consistent metadata and data quality, support for streaming data, negotiated reusability of agreements, reliability guarantees (SLAs), incentive mechanisms for data providers, and considerations regarding Green IT and energy-efficient operation.
The session concludes with a hands-on tutorial where participants execute an end-to-end consumer flow, step-by-step applying the concepts of asset, policy, offer, contract negotiation, and data transfer. Overall, the workshop demonstrates how Data Space technology can bridge organizational boundaries in the energy domain and provides concrete lessons learned for operationalizing interoperable, sovereign data exchange at scale.