Energy Newsletter

German electricity prices are declining by 6.7% in 2026 due to falling generation costs and the expansion of renewable energy to over 55% of the electricity mix. RWE forecasts continued price reductions with moderate gas prices. Industrial subsidies have been activated in parallel to secure competitiveness.

All four German transmission system operators (TenneT, Amprion, TransnetBW, 50Hertz) are introducing a new maturity level procedure from 1.1.2026 to regulate grid connection bottlenecks. This is a central hurdle for wind and solar investments and signals infrastructure limitations in accelerating the energy transition.

RWE CEO Markus Krebber secures the only state-independent transmission system operator with the Amprion acquisition and positions itself strategically in grid infrastructure. Competing operators such as TenneT, 50Hertz, and TransnetBW are already partially nationalized.

North and Baltic Sea auctions in 2026 launch a new construction phase for RWE, Vattenfall, and EnBW focusing on offshore wind capacity. Expansion pace is doubling: From 2026, 22 GW should be installed annually (vs. 7.2 GW in 2022).

Transmission grid charges fall in 2026 by 57% from 6.65 to 2.86 cents/kWh – a dramatic cost relief for electricity customers. Signals efficiency gains and fewer bottlenecks in long-distance grids with further decentralization.