Socially responsible energy transition: Electricity grid fees put to the test

04/01/2025
Reading time 4 Minutes

The energy transition requires not only the rapid expansion of renewable energies, but also a fair distribution of the associated costs. A key aspect of this is the grid fees, which determine how the costs of transporting electricity are distributed among different consumer groups. But are the existing measures and regulations still up to date and socially acceptable in view of the growing number of households with decentralized electricity generation?

Grid fees have increased in recent years – partly due to the need to expand the grid, but also as a result of rising operating costs and regulatory requirements. The following figure shows the most recent development: the grid fee for household customers amounted to an average of 11.62 cents/kWh in 2024 – an increase of 76 % compared to 2015.

Icon image — Illustration: Development of grid fees according to the monitoring report of the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) 2024

Grid fees in imbalance: Who pays for the electricity grids?

While home PV systems make an important contribution to decarbonization, the increase in self-generated electricity is fundamentally changing the financing of the grid infrastructure. As the grid fees are calculated according to the amount of grid electricity consumed, households with their own PV system pay lower grid fees in absolute terms due to their reduced grid consumption – even though they continue to use the grid, especially during periods of low self-generation. Consequently, they make a smaller financial contribution to the electricity infrastructure, while the remaining grid costs are allocated to a smaller amount of electricity. As a result, households without their own generation facilities are disproportionately burdened.

At the same time, the ramp-up of heat pumps, home storage systems and electric cars is changing the grid loads and placing new demands on the infrastructure. Heat pumps and electric vehicles increase electricity consumption and could help to stabilize grid fees in the long term, as the fixed costs are spread over a larger consumption rate. However, this relieving effect depends on when the increasing demand actually offsets the high investment costs for grid expansion.

How can costs be distributed fairly?

Security of supply remains a key issue: regardless of individual grid electricity consumption, the grid infrastructure must be sufficiently dimensioned at all times to reliably supply all households with electricity – especially in winter, when own electricity generation is low. Against this backdrop, the question arises as to whether the current grid fee model is still fair. This is because households that are either financially or structurally unable to install their own generation systems currently bear a disproportionate share of the grid costs. In order to ensure a fair distribution of the costs, a reform of the grid fee system that takes greater account of actual grid usage may be necessary.

Conclusion: A grid fee reform is inevitable

The energy transition can only be successful in the long term if it is not only ecologically sustainable, but also socially just. However, there is currently a clear imbalance in the financing of the grid infrastructure: households with their own electricity generation benefit twice – through lower energy costs and reduced grid charges. At the same time, households without PV systems or home storage systems bear a disproportionately high share of the grid costs. The increasing spread of heat pumps, home storage systems and electric vehicles is changing grid utilization and placing new demands on the grid fee structure.

In order to ensure social acceptance of the energy transition and guarantee a fair distribution of costs, a reform of grid fees is inevitable. The current calculation basis, which is primarily based on individual grid consumption, must be revised in order to take greater account of actual grid usage and the provision of infrastructure. A grid fee reform could reconcile social justice and the technical requirements of the energy future and thus place the energy transition on a stable, solid foundation.