Germany eyes heat pumps as Iran war drives energy costs up

Germany’s coalition government is preparing to replace the Heating Act with the Building Modernization Act. The previous Heating Act required heating systems installed in coming years to run on at least 65% renewable energy. The new proposal would allow oil and gas heating systems with much lower shares of climate-friendly gases to remain in existing buildings for a longer period. For new heating systems, the renewable-energy requirement would be reduced to at least 10%. The cabinet approved the plan based on a draft bill from Building Minister Verena Hubertz and Economy Minister Katherina Reiche. The government aims to pass the bill in parliament before the mid-July summer recess, but critics warn the timeline and implementation details are problematic.

"Germany's coalition government of Christian Democrats (CDU) and Social Democrats (SPD) is seeking to overturn the central provision of the heating law introduced by the previous administration. The original law stipulated that all heating systems installed in the coming years must run on at least 65% renewable energy. Under the new proposals, however, oil and gas heating systems with significantly lower shares of climate-friendly gases would still be allowed in existing buildings for a longer period."

"Under the planned legislation, new heating systems would only be required to use at least 10% renewable energy. The cabinet approved the plan based on a draft bill submitted by Building Minister Verena Hubertz (SPD) and Economy Minister Katherina Reiche (CDU). The government hopes to push it through parliament before the summer recess in mid-July."

"One of the most vocal critics is the National Regulatory Control Council (NKR), an independent advisory body to the German government. Its chairman, Lutz Goebel, described the draft bill in comments to the newspaper Bild as "one of the weakest and most impractical pieces of legislation presented to the National Regulatory Control Council in recent years." He said parts of the text were "barely comprehensible" and warned that problems with implementing the law were likely."

"According to Goebel, "laws like this contribute to growing frustration among citizens toward the state and politicians." Many observers believe the timetable is far too ambitious, particularly as the draft law has triggered not only support but also vociferous criticism."

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