Since October 1, 2023, with a deadline of April 1, 2024, for compliance, all electricity market participants are mandated by the Federal Network Agency's decision BK6-21-282 to switch their communication processes to AS4 (Applicability Statement 4). This directive is broadly supported by the German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) and the industry as a whole, as it is seen as a step towards a digitally resilient future.
At Lumenaza, we have successfully and punctually completed the transition to  AS4. According to BDEW findings, only about half of the nearly 2,000 market participants in the electricity sector have implemented the new communication format by April 1, 2024. We maintain compatibility with the older market communication to provide a bridge for partners who have not yet completed the transition.

The migration to AS4 offers several advantages: It secures data transmission through encryption and digital signatures, ensures the reliability of data transmission via acknowledgment and retry mechanisms, guarantees interoperability by adhering to the OASIS standard, facilitates integration into existing systems through compatibility with protocols such as EDI and ebXML, and promotes the automation of market communication through efficient transmission pathways.
At the heart of AS4-supported communication are the source and destination systems between which the exchange takes place. A central Messaging Service Handler (MSH) ensures the correct formatting and authentication of transmitted data via encrypted connections and digital signatures. These measures protect the data during transmission and guarantee that only authorized actors participate in the data exchange, significantly enhancing the integrity and security of communication processes in the electricity market.