German electricity system operator 50Hertz is planning to connect 75 new electricity projects to the grid in eastern Germany by the end of 2029, boosting capacity by almost 30 gigawatts, the company announced on Monday.

The planned projects include more than 30 solar power systems, 25 large-scale battery storage facilities, 10 wind farms, five data centres and seven electrolysers for the production of green hydrogen.

Substations will also be expanded and converted over the next few years to handle the additional load, the company said, though new transmission lines are generally not expected.

The ambitious plans are all scheduled to begin by the end of 2029, but it could take several more years before they are operational.

In addition to renewable energy projects, 50Hertz said new gas-fired power plants are also needed to secure supply and system stability.

However, the expansion of gas plants is dependent on ongoing negotiations with EU competition authorities over additional gas capacity in Germany.

A tender call for the plans can only be issued after these are completed. And under the current rules, 50Hertz said it would still take several years for the new power stations to be connected to the grid.

Along with the other three transmission system operators in the country - Amprion, Tennet and TransnetBW - 50Hertz is therefore calling for new rules.

“Without political countermeasures, the current regulatory framework for connections to the German transmission grid will ensure that in many places, neither new industrial areas nor data centres nor gas-fired power plants will be able to be connected in the next 10 years,” the four operators said in a joint position paper.