“Network Agency against extra costs for grid expansion”

Plans by the economy committee in the German Bundesrat to amend the current draft of incentive regulations concerning power grid expansion in Germany would cost the taxpayers an additional 3.5 billion euros until 2028, Achim Zerres, the head of energy regulation at the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) told dpa. Since its implementation in 2009, the regulation provides financial incentives for grid operators to invest in the electricity network. Because there is no natural competition, proceeds for grid operators are regulated by the government – and paid for by the consumers through the grid fees. The economy committee had recommended further relief for grid operators, such as limiting the guidelines for efficiency. The Bundesrat is scheduled to debate the draft on 8 July.

Read the article in German here.