Heating costs
Tenant association warns of rapidly rising costs for district heating
District heating should play an increasingly important role. However, while the federal government relieves gas customers, district heating customers are at risk of increasing costs.
The German Tenants’ Association warns of rapidly increasing district heating costs and calls on the federal government to relief. Many tenants are currently facing high cost increases in district heating, said Melanie Weber-Moritz, President of the German Tenants’ Association. While gas customers for 2024 an average of seven percent higher costs are to be expected compared to the previous year, the forecast price increase for district heating is more than three times as high.
The Federal Government had launched plans to relieve gas customers on Wednesday. Specifically, companies and consumers are to be released from the costs of the gas storage levy. The relief should be around 30 to 60 euros a year for a four -person budget depending on the consumption.
Tenants’ association: relief also for district heating
The tenant association welcomes the planned relief of the federal government for gas customers-but the price developments in district heating were particularly concerned about, said Weber-Moritz. “The Federal Government must now relieve the act and noticeably relieve districts’ customers, because tenants live in almost 80 percent of all households supplied with district heating.” The tenant protection must be taken into account much more when the legal requirements for heat delivery must be taken into account than before.
In a paper it says that there is no adequate protection for tenants from excessive thermal costs. The market for thermal deliveries is almost monopolistic – there is hardly any competition that could ensure that prices regulate prices and no systematic control of prices or pricing.
Share of district heating should increase
The proportion of district heating – especially in cities – should increase in the coming years, as well as the proportion of renewable energies in district heating. The background is efforts for more climate protection in the building sector.
The Union and SPD coalition agreement states that regulations on district heating should be revised, and the interests of consumer protection and the supply company should be taken into account: “We secure fair and transparent prices and strengthen the price supervision.”
dpa
Source: Stern
