Headlines
German lawmakers back measures to lower electricity costs
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on November 14, 2025
1 min readLast updated: January 21, 2026
Quick Summary
Germany's parliament approved bills to reduce electricity costs, including cutting network fees and extending tax breaks, pending upper house approval.
German Parliament Approves Bills to Reduce Electricity Prices
Legislative Actions to Lower Electricity Costs
BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany's lower house of parliament passed two bills late on Thursday aimed at lowering electricity prices, which are among the highest in Europe and are a burden on industry and the wider economy.
Factors Contributing to High Electricity Prices
The costs are inflated by transmission fees, levies and taxes.
* Lawmakers in the Bundestag voted to reduce network usagefees, a sizeable part of power bills, for all consumers for fouryears starting in 2026, with 6.5 billion euros ($7.6 billion) ingovernment subsidies to be transferred to transmission systemoperators annually. * They also voted to extend tax breaks that would haveexpired in 2026, bringing the electricity tax to the Europeanminimum for sectors like industry or agriculture. The financeministry estimates that the cut will benefit around 600,000companies. * Both bills require approval from the upper house ofparliament before coming into effect.Impact on Industry and Consumers
($1 = 0.8575 euros)
(Reporting by Berlin newsroom)
Key Takeaways
- •Germany's parliament passed bills to lower electricity costs.
- •Network usage fees will be reduced starting in 2026.
- •6.5 billion euros in subsidies to support transmission operators.
- •Electricity tax breaks extended to benefit industries.
- •Bills need upper house approval to be enacted.
Frequently Asked Questions about German lawmakers back measures to lower electricity costs
1What is a transmission fee?
A transmission fee is a charge levied by utility companies to cover the costs of transporting electricity from power plants to consumers.
