BBDF: German network agency says framework for BESS grid fees coming soon

One of the big questions on the first day of the Battery Business & Development Forum 2026 in Frankfurt: Will Germany’s grid fee exemption for battery storage end and if so, when?

Many of industry guests gathered for the second annual BBDF event have been waiting months for a signal on grid fees. Karsten Bourwieg from the Federal Network Agency provided some answers – at least in part.

The first framework for the future design will be published at the end of May or the beginning of June, according to the Federal Network Agency. This would for the first time provide a concrete signal of where the regulatory framework is headed as the Germany’s general network charge system for electricity (AgNes) process continues.

AgNes is about redesigning Germany’s network fee system. This is not exclusively about battery storage, but about a fundamental redistribution of the costs for grid expansion and operation. Battery storage has enjoyed a privileged position until now, being largely exempt from grid charges. The Federal Network Agency wants to make all network users more involved in the cost of the system, according to Bourwieg. This process isn’t just affecting traditional consumers and producers, it is increasingly affecting flexible assets such as energy storage, too.

However, the discussion at BBDF made it clear that the networks fee debate cannot happen in isolation. It is increasingly entangled with the debate over flexible grid connection agreements (FCA). There are operational restrictions behind this, such as ramp restrictions or timetable restrictions, in which operators can no longer adapt their operational planning several hours before delivery.

The combination of both mechanisms is causing concern. Philip Hesel, from Aurora Energy Research, presented an analysis that showed a hypothetical battery storage project can reach an internal rate of return (IRR) of around 20% without restrictions at the grid connection point. If individual FCA elements reach, this value drops by two to five percentage points, depending on the measure. Storage projects are still considered financeable at a project IRR of about 10%. Below that, the situation becomes critical.

When multiple constraints occur simultaneously, their effects can compound. FCA-related limitations can reduce the IRR by up to ten percentage points. If changes to the grid tariff structure are added to this, further reductions are likely. Projects could fall below the economic viability threshold as a result.

How these two regulatory approaches are integrated will therefore be crucial. The industry anticipates that restrictions resulting from flexible grid connections could be at least partially offset by lower grid fees.