German energy regulator plans to cut red tape to aid energy transition

Germany's federal energy regulator on Thursday mapped out a plan to more efficiently manage the allocation of the large sums needed by power and gas grid operators changing to low-carbon energy systems. "The energy transition is gathering pace," said the agency's president Klaus Mueller in an online press conference to discuss a strategy paper serving as the basis for a two-year planning process.

Germany's federal energy regulator on Thursday mapped out a plan to more efficiently manage the allocation of the large sums needed by power and gas grid operators changing to low-carbon energy systems.

"The energy transition is gathering pace," said the agency's president Klaus Mueller in an online press conference to discuss a strategy paper serving as the basis for a two-year planning process. "Power networks must be extended and digitised," Mueller said. "Gas networks can be partly switched to transporting green hydrogen while other parts will need to be closed at some stage."

The regulator will consult operators about how to meet the needs of institutional investors funding the conversion of infrastructure without overburdening consumers in a fee-based revenue system. The new scheme is expected to be in place in early 2026, said Barbie Haller, vice president of the Bundesnetzagentur.

Necessary investment costs could amount to a low three-digit billion euro sum for local electricity grids and a middle three-digit billion euro sum for cross-country electricity transmission grids up to 2030, she said. Gas grid costs could not yet be estimated.

Grid fees make up a sizeable part of German energy bills and have come under scrutiny since energy prices surged following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The regulator's paper includes ideas for simpler and faster procedures in an industry made up of hundreds of national and local operating companies.

Leading power grid companies including E.ON and EnBW have said they need more money to remain competitive while adding more wind and solar power production plants to the grids. Gas grid companies, that have to switch to hydrogen long-term or phase out parts of their networks include Gascade, Ontras, Open Grid Europe and Thyssengas.