From June 1, 2026, so-called “energy sharing” will be legally permitted in Germany, thanks to an amendment to the Energy Industry Act. Accordingly, private households, municipal institutions, clubs and other local actors should now be able to share the electricity they generate locally with others via the public power grid. But what does this mean in practice? What advantages does it bring and what do you have to consider?
The decentralized generation of electricity from your own solar system, biogas or wind power is booming. However, what happens to this self-generated electricity has previously been strictly regulated: private households are allowed to use this electricity themselves and entire buildings are also allowed to cover part of their electricity needs with their own systems. Until now, however, it was not permitted to simply feed this electricity intended for self-consumption or the resulting surpluses into the public grid or sell it to others.
What changed on June 1, 2026
An amendment to the law has now changed this – and at least created the conditions for sharing self-generated electricity at a local level. Since June 1, 2026, Section 42c of the Energy Industry Act states that private households, public institutions or cooperatives may share renewable electricity from their energy systems locally and using the public power grid with other so-called final consumers. In addition to private households, craft businesses and small businesses, end consumers also include small and medium-sized companies, hospitals, schools, authorities and municipal institutions.
“The amendment to the law creates completely new possibilities: Anyone who shares electricity is no longer automatically considered an energy supplier – and is therefore exempt from central supplier obligations,” says Lisa Strippchen from the German Energy Agency dena. “This is a prerequisite for energy sharing to be implemented at all.” In concrete terms, this means: Unlike before, those who share the electricity they generate themselves or sell locally no longer have to guarantee that their electricity supply ensures a complete supply to the participating final consumers.
Where there are still problems with the practical implementation
So much for the theory. However, the practical implementation of this amendment to the law could be delayed because some questions regarding technical implementation and billing have not been clarified or specified, as researchers at the Institute for Ecological Economic Research (IÖW) in Berlin explain. There is currently a lack of detailed information on how such local energy sharing is coordinated with the commercial operators of the distribution networks and how it is billed. “Those who receive the shared electricity only cover part of their needs and receive the remaining electricity from a normal electricity supplier. However, because the Federal Network Agency in particular still has to clarify which method the electricity can be allocated and billed, the implementation of energy sharing will be delayed,” says Astrid Aretz from the IÖW.
There are also technical requirements: both those who want to share their self-generated electricity locally and the end consumers who use this electricity need a smart meter. These measuring systems determine power consumption and feed-in every quarter of an hour. Using a distribution key, you can determine the proportions of sharing electricity and residual electricity consumption. So far, such smart meters have not been widely used in Germany. According to the researchers, it is also necessary for local network operators to catch up with digitalization so that the processing of smart meter data and billing can be automated.
Is it all worth it?
“It is difficult to assess whether energy sharing brings financial advantages over the normal feed-in tariff because there is a lack of empirical data and because the Energy Industry Act currently does not provide any financial incentives,” explains Strippchen. In addition, there is currently a lack of concrete information for those interested. “It is crucial for consumers that implementation is transparent and low-threshold, for example through model contracts and easily accessible information offerings,” emphasizes Henning Herbst from the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations. v.
The IÖW is working together with other actors – including network operators and energy companies – in a project to create more transparency and orientation. “We need clarity when implementing the abstract requirements of Section 42c EnWG,” says Tim Lindemann from the network operator Hamburger Energienetze. This involves, for example, standards for data exchange formats and accounting rules. According to those involved, the possibility of sharing self-generated electricity at a local level offers a valuable opportunity for active participation: “Sharing electricity with local actors motivates people in a different way to get involved in the local energy transition,” says Strippchen.
Source: Institute for Ecological Economic Research; Project and Information page for energy sharing