18.10.2024

Variable grid fees as an option for controllable consumption devices in line with § 14a

In the transition to decarbonisation of the heating and transportation sectors, there will be a ramp-up of electrical consumers such as heat pumps and electric vehicles in the coming years. In some grid areas, these can lead to grid overloads due to simultaneous power consumption. To ensure that the connection of these components is not slowed down by potential grid bottlenecks, § 14a of the Energy Industry Act (Energiewirtschaftsgesetz) regulates the grid-orientated control of these consumers. In the first step, the grid operator is allowed to throttle these consumption devices to a power of 4.2 kW in the event of a grid overload. In return, reduced grid fees are due for these consumption devices – regardless of whether they are actually controlled.

Controllable consumption devices, such as heat pumps or charging facilities for electric vehicles that were commissioned after 1 January 2024, must be controllable by the grid operator. As a return they can currently choose between a flat-rate grid fee reduction and a percentage reduction in the energy price. From 1 April 2025, customers will have the option of choosing time-variable grid fees as a tariff in addition to the flat-rate reduction in grid fees. These were announced by the distribution system operators (DSOs) in October as part of the publication of the provisional grid fees for 2025. Figure 1 shows the price ranges of the three tariff levels of 12 DSOs for 2025. The selection of DSOs covers a broad geographical spectrum of grid areas as well as urban and rural grid areas.

Figure 1: Price range of the 3 tariff levels of the 12 analysed DSOs: comparison of the individual tariff levels and spreads of the tariff levels of the individual DSOs, [1] to [12]

The incentive for grid-friendly consumption behaviour can be controlled in particular by the spreads, i.e. the difference between the individual tariff levels. In general, the higher the price spreads, the more financially tempting it is for consumers to purchase electricity during low-tariff windows. The greatest difference between both the high-tariff (HT) and the low-tariff (LT) compared to the standard-tariff (ST) of the DSOs analysed here is found by MitNetz (+7.52/-6.69 ct/kWh), EAM Netz (+6.11/-4.65 ct/kWh) and LEW Verteilnetz (+5.76/-5.28 ct/kWh. The particularly favourable LT from EWE Netz (0.49 ct/kWh), LEW Verteilnetzen (0.59 ct/kWh), Bayernwerk Netz (0.74 ct/kWh), MitNetz (0.83 ct/kWh) and Westnetz (1.00 ct/kWh) are also noticeable. With regard to the tariff structure, there are hardly any similarities between urban/rural DSOs or their geographical location. Overall, the ST of the DSOs analysed averaged 7.83 ct/kWh, the HT 11.82 ct/kWh and the LT 2.19 ct/kWh (see Figure 1).

Different time windows selected for the tariff levels

The DSOs have defined individual time windows for the validity of the individual tariff levels. This is intended to enable grid utilisation to be taken into account, depending on regional conditions, and to encourage the shifting of grid consumption to low-load periods. Figure 2 shows an overview of the time windows defined by the 12 DSOs analysed.

Figure 2: Time window for the individual tariff levels of the 12 DSOs analysed [1] to [12]

It can be seen that almost all DSOs have defined a HT time slot for the evening hours. In most cases, this extends from 5 pm to 9 pm. In addition, most DSOs have a LT time slot during the night. During the day, MitNetz, Thüringer Energienetze and Stadtwerke München have defined HT time slots. NetzeBW, EAM Netz and LEW Verteilnetz have defined an LT time window during the midday hours – probably to incentivise the consumption of PV generated electricity.

To summarise, it can be said that the defined tariff levels are different. With price spreads of over 10 ct/kWh between HT and LT (applies to 6 of the 12 DSOs analysed), it is possible, for example, to save 6 € when charging an electric vehicle with a battery capacity of 60 kWh by postponing the charging process, or 3 € with a price spread of 5 ct/kWh (applies to 7 of the 12 DSOs analysed) compared to the ST. This could be an incentive for consumers to purchase electricity from controllable consumption devices in the LT time window if possible. The metering infrastructure required for this should not be forgotten. Controllable consumption devices must be equipped with a smart metering system for billing the variable grid fee tariffs. It will also be interesting to see to what extent the variable grid fee tariffs overlap with the dynamic electricity tariffs that can be selected from 2025. This could create an additional incentive for consumers to optimise their electricity consumption from flexible consumption devices with a home-energy-management-system (HEMS for short) in order to benefit from even higher price spreads overall.

Literatur

[1] Bayernwerk Netz: Preisblatt Netzentgelte Strom vom 08.10.2024, 20241008_bayernwerk-preisblaetter-strom-2025-vorlaeufig.pdf (bayernwerk-netz.de)

[2] Netze BW: Vorläufige Preise für die Nutzung des Stromverteilnetzes der Netze BW GmbH vom 4.10.2024, https://assets.ctfassets.net/xytfb1vrn7of/7vhTdFhuKlhLpC8BNOgN3e/1f0735de3db5ac0dfe98702c889c4226/vorlaeufige-netzentgelte-strom-2025.pdf

[3] EWE NETZ GmbH: Netzentgelte Strom für 2025 vom 15.10.2024, [Preise & Entgelte Stromnetz | EWE NETZ GmbH (ewe-netz.de)|https://www.ewe-netz.de/marktpartner/strom/preise-und-entgelte]

[4] MITNETZ Strom: Preisblatt Netzentgelte Strom vom 07.10.2024, 2025_MNS_PB_vorl._02-10-2024.xlsx (mitnetz-strom.de)

[5] Thüringer Energienetze: Preisblatt STV (vorläufig), NNE_Strom_2025_vorlaeufig.pdf (thueringer-energienetze.com)

[6] Wesernetz: Preisblatt 5 Strom – §14a EnWG vom 15.10.2024, Stromentgelte für Bremen und Bremerhaven (wesernetz.de)

[7] Westnetz: Entgelte für die Netznutzung, Netzentgelte Strom für die Nutzung des Verteilnetzes der Westnetz

[8] EAM Netz: Preisblatt Netzentgelte Strom, Preisblatt (eam-netz.de)

[9] LEW Verteilnetz, Netzentgelte für steuerbare Verbrauchseinrichtungen gem. § 14a EnWG Preisblatt sVE – Modul 3 – gültig ab 01.01.2025 (vorläufig – Stand 08.10.2024) 20241008_lvn_vorlaeufige-netzentgelte-strom-ab-01012025.pdf (lew-verteilnetz.de)

[10] MVV Netze: Preisblatt 3: Netzentgelte für unterbrechbare Verbrauchseinrichtungen vom 09.10.2024, EVU: MVV Energie AG Mannheim (mvv-netze.de)

[11] Stadtwerke München: Netzentgelte Strom 2025 – Netznutzung Stand 10/2024, Netzentgelte Strom 2025 (vorläufig) (swm-infrastruktur.de)

[12] Hamburger Energienetze: Voraussichtliches Preisblatt Netzentgelte Strom 2025 vom 11.10.2024, [Netzentgelte Betrieb Stromnetz | Hamburger Energienetze – Hamburger Energienetze (hamburger-energienetze.de)|https://www.hamburger-energienetze.de/partner/marktpartner/energielieferanten/vertragliche-regelungen-betrieb-stromnetz/netzentgelte-betrieb-stromnetz]