In recent years, grid connection in Germany has become the bottleneck of the energy transition and digitalisation. A number of projects are failing or facing significant delays, which is why calls within the industry for a reform of the grid connection procedure are growing ever louder. Market participants are calling for clear and standardised rules, digitalisation of the process and binding deadlines.
Following the leak in February 2026 of the ‘Draft Bill to Amend Energy Industry Legislation, to Synchronise Plant Expansion with Grid Expansion and to Improve the Grid Connection Procedure’, the official draft bill for the so-called ‘grid package’ is now available. At the heart of the Grid Package are comprehensive amendments to the Energy Industry Act (EnWG) and the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG). Below, we provide an overview of the key issues for battery storage and renewable energy plants.
A detailed review from the perspective of data centre operators can be found here.
Redispatch reservation / construction cost subsidy for renewable energy
The leaked draft already provided for a so-called redispatch reservation, which has since been the subject of critical discussion within the industry. Nevertheless, this reservation has made it into the current draft bill from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) unchanged. This refers to the possibility for grid operators to designate so-called capacity-limited grid areas (Section 14 EnWG-RefE) in combination with the suspension of connection priority for renewable energies (Section 8(4) EEG-RefE). Accordingly, areas in which more than three per cent of the electricity generated was curtailed in the previous year as part of redispatch measures may in future be designated as regions subject to particularly severe grid congestion for a period of up to ten years. However, as soon as this 3 per cent threshold is no longer met for three consecutive years, grid operators must immediately revoke the designation as capacity-limited. In such capacity-limited grid areas, operators of renewable energy plants will in future be faced with a ‘choice’: either the existing priority for grid connection is withdrawn – which is likely to make grid connection more difficult, if not impossible – or the plant operators completely waive their entitlement to compensation in the event of redispatch. The aim is to better manage grid connection in regions that are already heavily utilised and to avoid additional burdens. For plant operators, the redispatch reservation constitutes a significant change in the calculation of the economic viability of renewable energy plants. In conjunction with (i) the construction cost subsidy planned for the future (Section 17 EEG-RefE), (ii) the potential levying of feed-in grid charges (AgNes process, see here) and (iii) the restructuring of the support scheme to so-called Contracts for Difference (see here), the cost pressure on renewable energy operators is increasing significantly. Industry associations are already warning of the sector being overburdened and a resulting gap in renewable energy expansion.
Legal framework for the maturity assessment procedure at Transmission System Operator (TSO) level
Section 17a of the EnWG-RefE is intended to create a legal basis for the maturity assessment procedure already underway. The TSOs had called for such a basis in their concept paper on the maturity assessment procedure, even though the BNetzA takes the view that the system change would already be permissible under the current legal framework. In this respect, the enabling provision hardly goes beyond the general requirements in Section 17(1) of the EnWG but specifically includes a mandate for cooperation between the TSOs. In addition, Section 17a of the EnWG-RefE provides for a reservation of approval and the BNetzA’s powers to amend. This raises the question of whether such a process will be conducted retrospectively for the current maturity assessment procedure once the law has been passed.
The draft bill leaves open the question of whether a maturity assessment procedure can also be introduced at the DSO level. Such a change has already been announced by some network operators. However, it will be necessary to assess on a case-by-case basis whether such a procedure is actually appropriate for each network level.
Binding response deadlines
Unlike in the EEG or the KraftNAV, where legally binding deadlines for grid operators to assess grid connection requests have been enshrined in law, there is no such provision in the EnWG for all other connection applicants. In practice, this has contributed to a significant backlog of grid connection requests, meaning that response and assessment times ranging from several months to a year are the norm. However, such response and review times are at odds with the fast-paced nature of the industry, which is why the traffic-light coalition government had already sought to introduce a universal three-month deadline, which did not make it over the finish line. The Grid Package revisits this in a watered-down form and now provides for a three-month deadline within which grid operators must respond to grid connection requests in future, as well as a status update every three months until a decision is made on the grid connection application (Section 17d EnWG-RefE). Although the new regulation leads, as a first step, to greater transparency and contact between grid operators and connection applicants, it does not eliminate the problems that exist in practice or speed up the grid connection process. Binding regulations for all parties involved would be desirable in the further legislative process.
Uniform regulations on capacity reservation
Reserving grid connection capacity is one of the most important building blocks for project implementation. Financing commitments, investment participation and sales processes all depend on it. This makes it all the more alarming that, to date, there are no statutory provisions in either the EEG or the EnWG regarding reservation, the reservation procedure (including reservation extensions) or the level of the reservation fee. Instead, the project developer has so far been dependent on the individual grid operator and on the regulations that change regularly in this regard. Section 17f of the EnWG-RefE is intended to introduce, for the first time, a uniform system for reserving grid connection capacity. To this end, the transmission system operators (TSOs) are required to submit a standardised reservation process to the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) within 12 months of the Act being promulgated, which will then review and approve these rules (see Section 17f(1), (3) of the EnWG-RefE). In addition, Section 17f of the EnWG-RefE stipulates for the first time that a reasonable reservation fee may be charged for the reservation. According to the BNetzA’s FAQs, the threshold for what is considered reasonable is approximately EUR 1,500 per MW. This is far less than the advance payment on the construction cost subsidy that is sometimes required.
Digitalisation of the grid connection process
In addition, the draft provides for the creation of a uniform digital infrastructure for network operators, such as a joint internet platform for all distribution system operators (Section 14e EnWG-RefE), through which information on the grid connection procedure is made centrally accessible. Furthermore, grid operators are obliged to update available grid connection capacities on a monthly basis and display them transparently on relevant grid maps, as well as to offer connection applicants the opportunity, from 2028 at the latest, to obtain non-binding grid information and to provide a fully digital connection procedure (Sections 17c, 17e EnWG-RefE).
Strengthening of co-location BESS
The draft also establishes new framework conditions in the area of innovative plant concepts. It is clarified that grid connection applications for combined plants – such as the coupling of battery storage systems with renewable energy plants – may not be rejected as long as no additional grid capacity is required (Section 17(2a) EnWG). The aim is to promote so-called grid-neutral projects that make more efficient use of existing infrastructure.
Reservation and withdrawal of grid connection capacity
Irrespective of the applicable grid connection procedure, grid operators are to be permitted in future to give preference to certain projects in the grid connection procedure and, as a precautionary measure, to have the option of blocking capacity in the grid for this purpose (Section 17b EnWG-RefE). Relevant criteria for prioritisation may include system security, statutory expansion targets, the needs of other grid levels or regional planning requirements. This opens up the possibility of strategically managing grid connection in the interests of the overall system but also carries the risk of excluding certain connection applicants from the grid connection procedure. Accordingly, the determination of such prioritisation and capacity reservations is to be reviewed and approved by the BNetzA prior to their application.
Another key element concerns the more efficient use of existing connection capacity. In future, grid operators are to be able to withdraw unused grid connection capacities if these have not been used, or have not been used to the agreed extent, over a period of more than three years (Section 17(1a) EnWG-RefE). It is not entirely clear when the three-year period begins to run or when the grid connection agreement comes into effect. Under the EEG, this is deemed to be upon submission of the application. Under the EnWG, however, it would be entirely conceivable to base this on receipt of the grid technical statement, a grid connection reservation or the grid connection contract. Given the differing practices in the grid connection process, it would therefore seem more sensible to refer to the date of commissioning of the grid connection.
Conclusion
The assessment of the draft bill is mixed.
On the one hand, the draft addresses key challenges of the energy transition and creates urgently needed tools for more efficient grid management. The greater system focus, the digitalisation of processes and the ability to prioritise could, in the long term, help to speed up grid connections and make better use of existing capacity.
On the other hand, a multitude of legal issues – particularly regarding the connection of battery storage systems – remain unresolved. Furthermore, the lack of clear deadlines and, in some cases, lengthy implementation periods do not bode well for a rapid improvement in the grid connection situation.
Furthermore, the regulatory interventions affecting renewable energy are significant. In particular, the introduction of the redispatch clause and the imposition of construction cost subsidies could significantly impair the economic viability of new renewable energy projects.
Overall, it is to be welcomed that policymakers are addressing the key issue of grid connection. However, rather than a major amendment, we are likely to see only minor adjustments. In this respect, the question remains as to whether a separate grid connection regulation should not be created, particularly for BESS or data centres, in order to take account of the specific needs in these sectors and to make rapid progress in implementing these core technologies, rather than continuing to hold them back.
