HEIDELBERG (dpa-AFX) - The new regulation for a fairer distribution of electricity grid expansion costs has led to almost the same level of electricity grid fees in rural and urban areas, according to a Verivox analysis. "At the turn of the year, electricity grid fees in rural areas fell by nine percent and are now at the same level as in urban areas," according to an evaluation by the comparison portal.

Whether this will have an impact on electricity prices depends on how the utilities pass on the changes. According to Verivox, electricity grid fees account for around 29 percent of the electricity bill. In October, the President of the Federal Network Agency, Klaus Müller, called on electricity suppliers to pass on any fee reductions by grid operators to end customers.

According to the analysis, in 2024 consumers in rural areas with an annual consumption of 4,000 kilowatt hours still paid an average of 44 euros more than households in urban areas. According to Verivox, city dwellers now pay two euros more than households in rural areas. For the analysis, Verivox classified postcode areas with up to 5,000 households as rural and areas with more than 20,000 households as urban.

Costs for grid expansion to be passed on to all electricity customers

The background to this is the expansion of the electricity grid in many rural areas in order to connect the increasing number of wind turbines and photovoltaic systems. This expansion is financed from the so-called grid fees that all electricity customers have to pay. In the past, this had led to grid fees being higher in regions with a strong expansion of green electricity than in other regions.

The new regulation introduced by the Federal Network Agency now ensures that the additional costs are passed on to all electricity customers, through an increase in the network levies of around 0.9 cents per kilowatt hour. In return, network operators who have to expand a particularly large amount will be relieved. According to the Federal Network Agency, there were 866 distribution system operators in Germany in 2024.

According to Verivox, the equalization mechanism has increased the average electricity grid fees for households (4,000 kilowatt hours annual consumption) in cities by almost one percent to 426 euros per year at the turn of the year. In rural areas, on the other hand, they have fallen by around nine percent to 424 euros.

Verivox: "The costs of the energy transition have now been distributed more fairly."

"Previously, households in rather sparsely populated areas also had to pay higher electricity grid fees as a result of the strong expansion of renewable energies. These costs of the energy transition have now been distributed more fairly," said Verivox energy expert Thorsten Storck.

The greatest relief, 28 percent, was seen in rural areas of Schleswig-Holstein. This is followed by sparsely populated areas in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (minus 26 percent), Brandenburg (minus 19 percent) and Bavaria (minus 12 percent). There have been slight increases of three percent in Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate./tob/DP/zb