Industry pressure is paying off: As recently as January of this year, the Federal Network Agency (“BNetzA”) had called into question the 20-year exemption from grid fees for battery energy storage systems (“BESS”). During the presentation of the interim report on the procedure for establishing the new general electricity network fee system (“AgNes”) on May 27, 2026, it has now moved away from this – constitutionally problematic – position.
Current legal situation regarding grid fees for BESS
Under current law, there are consumption-based grid fees in Germany for the withdrawal of electricity. BESS are exempt from this under Section 118(6) of the Energy Industry Act (“EnWG”). This exemption applies to systems commissioned by August 4, 2029, for a period of 20 years from the date of commissioning.
Revision of grid fees by AgNes
As part of the AgNes procedure, the BNetzA is now planning a fundamental overhaul of grid fee financing.
A capacity-based fee (capacity fee) is to be introduced for generation facilities and BESS, based on the contracted connected capacity. According to the documents published so far, this fee is expected to be in the range of approximately 4 to 7 EUR/kW per year, although the specific details and amount are still subject to the ongoing procedure.
In addition, dynamic grid fees are to be introduced as a tool for grid control and congestion management. However, these are not intended to finance grid costs and are currently being discussed for implementation no earlier than 2030.
In its latest publication, the BNetzA largely confirmed these key points, which were already known from the AgNes guidance papers.
No double charges for BESS
Contrary to earlier proposals, there will be no additional grid fee based on usage or consumption – such as the one end-users will continue to pay – for BESS.
Accordingly, storage facilities will not be required to pay one grid charge for electricity withdrawn from the grid and another for electricity injected into the grid. Instead, the proposed capacity-based grid charge (Kapazitätsentgelt) is intended to cover grid usage for both withdrawal and injection.
Section 118(6) EnWG is also to apply to new capacity fees
The BNetzA is also making a significant policy shift regarding the protection of legitimate expectations. The 20-year grid fee exemption under Section 118(6), first sentence, EnWG for facilities commissioned by August 4, 2029, is to continue to apply with regard to the planned capacity fee.
However, Section 118(6), first sentence, EnWG is not to apply to dynamic grid fees. In the opinion of the BNetzA, the protection of legitimate expectations should be given little weight in this regard, as the dynamic grid fees would have a positive effect on the earning potential of BESS regardless of their location.
A new development is that the BNetzA intends to link the protection of legitimate expectations to an additional condition: For facilities that are commissioned only after the AgNes regulation takes effect (expected in early 2027), protection of legitimate expectations shall apply only if the final investment decision (“FID”) was made prior to the AgNes regulation taking effect.
Future grid fee system for BESS
Based on these current plans, the following grid fees are expected to apply to BESS in the future:
- Capacity fees for all BESS not covered by the protection of legitimate expectations provision (projects commissioned by August 4, 2029, and FID prior to the entry into force of the AgNes regulation)
- Dynamic grid fees for all BESS – with no exemptions under Section 118(6) EnWG
However, there will be no additional usage or consumption-based fees for the withdrawal or feed-in of electricity.
FID as the centerpiece of legitimate expectations
For many project developers, the FID requirements thus become the centerpiece of the economic assessment of their projects in light of the grid fee regime. According to the BNetzA’s preliminary view, an FID is deemed to exist if:
- components amounting to approximately half of the investment volume have been bindingly ordered, and withdrawal from the contracts is not possible without significant financial loss; and
- a binding grid connection commitment has been obtained.
The second requirement in particular could prove to be a bottleneck. Grid connection capacities are scarce, and the duration of the connection procedures is largely in the hands of the grid operators.
A particular challenge arises for BESS projects at the transmission grid level:
In the spring of this year, transmission system operators replaced the “first come, first served” principle with the maturity-based procedure (“first ready, first served”). All grid connection requests are processed in cycles. If the available grid connection capacity is insufficient to meet all requests, prioritization is based on the progress of project planning. Those who are unsuccessful in one cycle can try again in the next cycle.
The first application cycle began this spring. The deadline for submitting applications is June 30, 2026. According to the schedule set by the transmission system operators, binding grid connection commitments are to be issued in February 2027 following the selection decision. This conflicts with the requirements now presented for claiming the protection of legitimate expectations. According to these requirements, a FID must have been reached before AgNes enters into force (expected in spring 2027), which requires a binding grid connection commitment. There is therefore a risk that projects at the extra-high voltage level will, due to the new maturity-based procedure and the associated timeline, effectively no longer be able to meet these requirements – in any case, only projects from the first application cycle will have a realistic chance of meeting the criteria in time.
No change in policy regarding protection of legitimate expectations in the phase-out of avoided grid fees
The BNetzA’s change in thinking is also noteworthy in light of its decision regarding the phase-out of tariffs for decentralized generation between 2026 and 2028. In that context, considerations of protection of legitimate expectations played a negligible role. In particular, it did not consider whether operators made their (final) investment decisions in reliance on the continued existence of the tariffs for decentralized generation.
More than 100 plant operators have therefore filed a complaint at the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf. Nevertheless, the BNetzA has so far maintained its position. The differing treatment of the principle of protection of legitimate expectations is difficult to comprehend. It remains to be seen how the Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf will rule on this matter.
(5 June 2026)