Building Energy Act: deceptive calm before the storm

After months of fierce political disputes across the government and opposition parties, the new Building Energy Act (GEG) will be passed by the Bundestag on Friday. The majority of the traffic light coalition is sufficient for this. The government, especially Economics Minister Robert Habeck, already seems relieved.

Finally time to take a deep breath? Barely. Habeck has to reckon with the fact that the break in fighting will not last long. Because the resistance to the GEG has long been regrouping. He will move on immediately. After the Zoff is before the Zoff. This is not only ensured by the CDU, which has been fueling the anti-sentiment since May with a campaign called “Fair heating instead of burning”.

Earlier in the week, representatives from the 14 most powerful clubs and associations that have anything to do with energy and heat met. The energy policy spokesman for the Union faction, Andreas Jung, and the construction policy spokesman, Jan-Marco Luczak, had invited. In the video switch among other things: the German Association of Gas and Water, the Federal Association of Energy and Water Management, the German Association of Towns and Municipalities, the Climate Alliance Germany, the Capital Office Bioenergy, the Central Association of German House, Housing and and landowners. However, those responsible for the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations and the German Tenants’ Association also made their statements.

Very close

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What united everyone was criticism of the new GEG. It can’t work like this, we have to do it again, was the tenor. The reproaches in trade and industry were naturally more severe than those of consumer advocates, for whom climate protection is very important. Some of the stakeholders would like to thwart and postpone the vote in Parliament again in order to get another chance to assert their interests in the heating market in open discussions and with back-room diplomacy.

The associations continue to have serious doubts about the Building Energy Act

The criticism of the lobbyists is sometimes still fundamental. Not long ago, the Federal Association of the German Heating Industry criticized Habeck’s suggestion that the obligation to convert to green heating energy, i.e. primarily to heat pumps, be introduced as early as 2024. Now that owners of old buildings have been given many years to make the change, the BDH can’t seem to move fast enough. Consumers are unsettled, the funding situation is unclear, and orders for heat pumps are falling drastically. The industry is threatened with an order disaster in the coming year.

Everyone fights for themselves. The “Bioenergy Capital Office”, the merger of the Federal Bioenergy Association, the German Farmers’ Association, the Biogas Association and the Wood Energy Association, definitely wants more wood and biomass in the heating system of the future. The association of municipal companies definitely wants to preserve the gas network structure, with which money can be made so well, and is pushing for it to be used later to supply private heating systems with green hydrogen. The climate alliance would like to have the option of hydrogen removed from the law entirely because the substance is too inefficient to heat living rooms with it. The tenants’ association is even worried that landlords will get off badly when it comes to funding and tenants will suffer as a result. And the Federation of German Industries complains that the heating subsidy has been halved, a radical move that is massively damaging to the manufacturers of the systems and the craftsmen.

Admittedly, no one spoke directly in favor of having the constitutionality of the GEG immediately reviewed by the highest court. But one thing is clear: the battle for traffic lights is far from over. Before the ink of Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who has to sign the law, is dry, a new wave of resistance will be unleashed. Because all interest groups want one thing above all: to secure their own living quarters.

Ute Czylwik from the German Energy Efficiency Initiative (DENEFF) has already launched an attack: “The next GEG amendment is already on the horizon.” And the lobbyists can’t get to that point fast enough.