Grid fees for industrial customers: the definitive guide

PART 1: TODAY

Capacity charges: one quarter-hour determines the annual bill

Industrial companies pay more grid fees than necessary. Almost always. Not because the tariffs are wrong, but because the load profile is not optimised.

How the capacity charge works

RLM customers are billed through two components: an energy charge (EUR/kWh) for consumed electricity and a capacity charge (EUR/kW) based on the highest measured demand value of the year. In practice this is the highest 15-minute average recorded through load-profile metering, as set out in StromNEV §17.

The key point: one 15-minute measurement, the annual peak load, determines the capacity charge for the full billing year. Depending on the grid operator and voltage level, it can represent 30-50 percent of annual grid-fee cost.

When do peaks occur?

Simultaneous start-up of several energy-intensive units
Cold winter mornings, when heating, lighting, and production start together
Restart after a production break, shift change, or holiday
Missing control: no load management, no prioritisation

Example calculation: industrial customer, 10 GWh/year

Position	Value
Annual peak load, current state	1,500 kW
Grid operator capacity charge, medium voltage	approx. 60 EUR/kW/year
Total capacity-charge cost	90,000 EUR/year
10% reduction (-150 kW)	Saving: 9,000 EUR
20% reduction (-300 kW)	Saving: 18,000 EUR

For high-voltage connections and annual consumption above 20 GWh, the absolute savings are significantly larger.

PART 2: REGULATORY FRAMEWORK

§14a EnWG: who does it apply to?

§14a EnWG has been newly regulated since January 2024 and creates the regulatory foundation for time-variable grid fees. RLM customers, however, already face a different active mechanism.

The three §14a modules at a glance

Module 1: flat discount

Reduced grid fee without active control. For household customers with controllable devices such as EVs and heat pumps.

Module 2: control to 4.2 kW

The grid operator may throttle consumption to a maximum of 4.2 kW during congestion. The customer receives a discount as compensation. This also mainly affects the SLP segment.

Module 3: time-variable grid fees

Tariffs that vary by time of day and grid utilisation. Currently these mainly apply to SLP customers. For RLM customers, they are not directly applicable under the current BNetzA BK6 determination.

RLM customers: the capacity charge is their §14a

Industrial companies with RLM meters already have a time-variable cost signal today: the capacity charge. The message is the same as with §14a Module 3:

When electricity is consumed is just as important as how much is consumed. A single unfavourable quarter-hour in the year can cause a material share of annual grid-fee cost.

Who wins and who loses?

Well positioned:

15-minute data transparency
Active peak-load management
Flexible production processes
EMS / real-time load monitoring
Integrated procurement strategy

Exposed:

No real-time load monitoring
Rigid production schedules
Grid fees treated as an unknown variable
Pure fixed-price contracts

PART 3: OUTLOOK 2028+

AgNes: the reform that changes everything

The BNetzA AgNes procedure, Allgemeine Netzentgeltsystematik Strom, will fundamentally reform the German grid-fee structure from 2028/29 onward, with direct consequences for industrial customers.

What AgNes means

AgNes, BNetzA procedure GBK-25-01-1#3, is the most comprehensive reform project for German electricity grid-fee methodology in decades. It includes, among other things:

New special grid fees for industrial customers, explicitly for RLM consumers
Introduction of time-variable price signals (ZVP) also for large consumers
Reform of cost allocation, with consultation running until April 2026
Participation of generators and storage assets in grid costs
Pilot projects with selected industrial companies already underway

What are time-variable price signals (ZVP)?

Time-variable price signals are grid-fee tariffs whose level changes depending on time of day, weekday, or current grid utilisation. Instead of one fixed EUR/kW or EUR/kWh price, a price band applies: higher in grid-critical periods and lower in grid-relieving periods. This creates an economic incentive to shift consumption into cheaper windows.

Example: high-load tariff on weekdays from 7:00 to 20:00: 80 EUR/kW; low-load tariff from 20:00 to 7:00 plus weekends: 30 EUR/kW. Companies that shift energy-intensive processes pay significantly less without reducing total consumption.
For RLM customers, the key point is this: AgNes creates the regulatory framework for what §14a Module 3 is for households, but at industrial scale. Time-variable price signals, flexibility incentives, and new tariff structures are coming for large consumers.

AgNes timeline

2025: determination procedure starts

BNetzA opens GBK-25-01-1#3, including consultations on storage and generator fees.

2026: pilot projects and consultations

Time-variable price signals (ZVP) are tested with selected industrial companies. Cost-allocation consultation runs until April 2026.

2027: determination expected

BNetzA adopts a new grid-fee methodology based on pilot findings.

2028/29: reform enters into force

New special grid fees for industrial customers become active, and time-variable signals for RLM customers apply.

PART 4: RECOMMENDED ACTIONS

What you should do now

Companies that build load flexibility today will be structurally better positioned for AgNes special tariffs from 2028 onward, while already saving through capacity-charge optimisation.

Analyse the load profile

Evaluate 15-minute data from the last 12 months. When did the annual peak occur? What caused it? How often was the peak nearly reached?

Quantify capacity-charge cost

Identify the current capacity charge from the grid operator. Calculate what a 10-20 percent reduction in annual peak load means in euros.

Identify flexibility potential

Which processes can be shifted in time? Which units can be temporarily curtailed without production impact?

Build real-time monitoring

Create visibility into current power demand in real time. Configure threshold alerts before the annual peak is reached.

Integrate the procurement strategy

Think about capacity-charge optimisation and energy procurement together. Hours that are cheap on spot markets and hours that are favourable for grid fees often overlap. Being AgNes-ready means thinking in an integrated way today.

How exposed is your load profile?

Meteoric analyses your annual peak, quantifies the savings potential, and prepares you for the AgNes reform: concretely and in euros.

miguel@meteoric.energy · meteoric.energy

SOURCES & FACT-CHECK

Source directory

All statements in this guide were checked against publicly accessible sources and current BNetzA procedure documents, as of March 2026.

Regulatory sources

§14a EnWG: controllable consumption devices

Energy Industry Act (EnWG), §14a, version from 01.01.2024

BNetzA determination BK6-22-300, Ruling Chamber 6, 27.11.2023

https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de -> BK6 -> §14a EnWG

AgNes: Allgemeine Netzentgeltsystematik Strom

BNetzA determination procedure GBK-25-01-1#3, started 2025

Including pilot projects for industrial grid fees (ZVP) and consultation on cost allocation, submissions until 17.04.2026

https://www.bundesnetzagentur.de/DE/Beschlusskammern/GBK/Ebene1_Rahmen/AgNes/start.html

StromNEV: Electricity Grid Fee Ordinance

§17 StromNEV: capacity-charge rule for RLM customers; calculation basis = highest measured quarter-hour demand in the billing year

https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stromnev/

ARegV: Incentive Regulation Ordinance

Basis for revenue caps for grid operators; regulates efficiency incentives in grid operation

https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/aregv/

Notes on correctness

Capacity-charge level, example value of 60 EUR/kW: the value used in this guide is a representative benchmark for medium-voltage customers. Actual capacity charges vary significantly by grid operator, around 30-100 EUR/kW/year. The customer’s own distribution-grid tariff is authoritative.

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