German Electric Grid Costs Doubled Over Last Decade

The fees to operate Germany’s electricity grid have more than doubled over the past decade, primarily due to Berlin’s green agenda, according to official statistics.

According to figures from the Federal Network Agency, the network fees paid by German consumers and companies rose this year to 33 billion euros ($38/£28.6 bn), compared to 15.9 billion ($18.5/£14 bn) euros in 2015, paper of record Die Welt reported.

The primary reason for the significant rise in costs has been the green energy transition imposed on the country by successive governments, which has compelled grid operators to extensively convert equipment to better handle so-called renewable forms of energy.

This cost has mostly been passed on to consumers and businesses. In 2015, the average German household paid a grid network fee of 6.59 cents per kilowatt hour of electricity. Now, a decade on, the average household pays 11.62 cents for the same amount of energy.