Government plans further electricity levy
The German government will finance the expansion of natural gas power plants through a levy on the electricity price. The consumer costs are expected to be around "a small decimal place" as a result. This project is part of the plans for a new power plant security law.
For the construction of new and the modernization of existing natural gas power plants, the German government is planning a new levy on the electricity price. This was reported from the Federal Ministry of Economics. The new installations are intended to help maintain the power supply even with an increasing share of renewable energies. When the sun doesn't shine and the wind doesn't blow, they will come into play.
According to the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung," citing information from Berlin, the order of magnitude of the planned levy should be "a small decimal place." Based on other levies on the electricity price, the comparison portal Verivox assumes that an average family will incur extra costs of between one and three Euros per month as a result.
Taxes, taxes, and levies accounted for around 31 percent of the electricity price in the current month, according to Verivox. An additional 30 percent went towards grid fees, while the remaining 39 percent went towards electricity procurement and the margin of electricity suppliers. Before the abolition of the EEG levy - which financed the expansion of renewable energies - in July 2022, the state's share of the electricity price was significantly higher.
Scholz, Habeck, and Lindner's Plan
This project is part of the plans for a new power plant security law, which Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Economics Minister Robert Habeck, and Finance Minister Christian Lindner agreed on in the past week. In total, capacities of 12 Gigawatts (GW) are to be created, as well as 500 Megawatts of storage.
To achieve this, new natural gas power plants will be built, which can be operated with climate-friendlier hydrogen at a later stage; existing power plants will also be converted. Capacities of 5 Gigawatts are to be financed from the Climate and Transformation Fund of the Federal Government, and an additional 5 Gigawatts through the aforementioned levy.
Robert Habeck, the German Economics Minister, supports the construction of new and the modernization of existing natural gas power plants, which will contribute to maintaining the power supply even with an increasing share of renewable energies. Despite the new levy on the electricity price, which could result in additional costs for an average family of up to three Euros per month, Habeck emphasizes that these power plants can be operated with climate-friendlier hydrogen at a later stage.
