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Habeck's heating plans: what costs consumers now face

2023-03-03T15:36:05.683Z


In Germany, most people heat with oil or gas. Economics Minister Habeck wants to change that in the future - with far-reaching consequences for consumers.


In Germany, most people heat with oil or gas.

Economics Minister Habeck wants to change that in the future - with far-reaching consequences for consumers.

Berlin – Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) is pushing ahead with his plans for changing the heating system.

“If the old gas heating still works, it can stay in.

If it's broken, you can fix it.

If it can no longer be repaired, there are practicable interim solutions," Habeck told

Wirtschaftswoche

.

But if something new is needed, "then one should no longer invest in old fossil systems".

A corresponding draft law of his house together with the Ministry of Construction is already well advanced, but nothing has been decided yet - not even within the traffic light coalition, since the FDP does not approve of Habeck's plans.

Off for oil and gas heating: That is Habeck's plan

In the coalition agreement, the SPD, Greens and FDP agreed that from 2025 every newly installed heating system should be operated with 65 percent renewable energy.

In March of last year, the coalition leaders then agreed that “if possible” from January 1, 2024, every newly installed heating system should be operated in this way.

Details of the plans, which are still subject to change, were made public by the Ministry of Economic Affairs on Thursday.

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Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) is pushing ahead with his plans to change the heating system.

(archive image)

© Kay Nietfeld/dpa

From January 1, 2024, every newly installed heating system should be operated with at least 65 percent renewable energy.

Current heaters can continue to be operated, and repairs are still possible.

After 30 years, however, they have to be replaced, which according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs is already the case in principle - however, previous exemptions are to be phased out gradually from 2026.

What happens if an old oil or gas heater breaks down?

If a heating system breaks beyond repair, it can be temporarily replaced with a fossil-fuelled heating system, for example as a leasing device.

However, this must then be replaced within three years with a system that meets the new requirements.

If a connection to a heating network is foreseeable, in which the heat generated elsewhere comes into the house via a pipe, operation for up to five years is possible.

For multi-family houses with gas heating, where everyone has their own boiler in the apartment, a period of six years should apply: If the first gas heating in the building fails, the owners must choose heating technology within three years according to the new specifications.

If they decide to centralize the heating, they have another three years to implement it.

However, there should also be a hardship regulation: In special cases, the obligation to use 65 percent heating can be waived if there is particular hardship, i.e. the changeover is economically unreasonable for the owner.

Heaters: Owners have these options

To implement the target of 65 percent renewables, various technologies are possible, between which owners should be able to choose.

Heat pumps should be the standard solution for new builds.

Direct electricity heating, which heats with electricity, and district heating would also be possible.

Heating networks that use industrial waste heat, for example, must have a share of 50% renewable energies by 2030, and they must be operated entirely in this way by 2045.

Biomass heating, for example with wood pellets, would also be an option for existing buildings, not for new buildings.

Since, according to the Ministry, sustainably produced biomass will not be available in large quantities in the future, such heating systems should be reserved for buildings that are listed as historical monuments or difficult to renovate.

Gas heating, which uses at least 65 percent sustainable biomethane or hydrogen produced with renewable energies, would also be possible, as would hybrid heating, i.e. a combination of a heat pump and a fossil heating system.

Habeck's heating plans: Consumers face these costs

The problem: All of these solutions are expensive, and consumers are faced with corresponding costs.

For example, old, poorly insulated single-family homes need very powerful heat pumps, which can cost well over 30,000 euros, reports Der

Spiegel

.

So far, heat pumps have cost between 16,000 and 35,000 euros, depending on size and design.

And: Before installing a heat pump, the property must be professionally renovated and insulated - otherwise there is a risk of horrendous electricity costs.

Obtaining alternatives could also prove difficult: district heating does not exist in many areas and heating systems that run on biogas or biomass are usually quite expensive.

Anyone who can opt for geothermal energy has to pay for the drilling costs for geothermal probes, which are estimated at between 7,000 and 40,000 euros, depending on the length of the borehole.

After all, so that the higher costs do not end up with the tenants, according to the ministry, landlords should only be able to pass on the procurement costs at the level that would also be incurred with the basic supply tariff for gas.

Habeck's heating plans: Are there also financial subsidies?

The ministry wants to provide financial support for the switch, such as to the heat pump.

The aim is to start the funding parallel to the new requirements at the turn of the year, explained the Ministry of Economic Affairs.

With this and with reduced heat pump electricity tariffs, the bottom line is that heating should not become more expensive than with fossil-based heating, the Ministry of Economics asserts.

Due to EU emissions trading, in which rights to emit climate-damaging gases are traded, the prices for heating oil, diesel, petrol and natural gas will continue to rise from 2027 anyway, while systems such as heat pumps will become cheaper as they become more widespread.

The Ministry of Economic Affairs also wants to extend tax breaks for climate-friendly renovations.

Why is there a heating conversion at all?

The conversion is intended to serve climate protection, and the dependence on fossil energy imports should also decrease under the impression of the consequences of the Ukraine war.

By 2045, the building stock should be climate-neutral, i.e. not causing more greenhouse gases than can be bound again.

Overview: This is how Germany has been heating so far

According to the Federal Ministry of Economics, more than 80 percent of the heat consumed in Germany is generated from fossil fuels.

More than 40 percent of the natural gas consumed is used to heat buildings and for hot water supply.

Almost every second household heats with natural gas, almost every fourth with heating oil, around 14 percent with district heating.

So-called direct electricity heating such as radiators and heat pumps, which use heat from the air, groundwater or the ground, have not even accounted for three percent so far.

(lma/dpa)

List of rubrics: © Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2023-03-03

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