Leading political figures from several northern German states are advocating for a restructuring of the nation’s electricity pricing system. According to reports in the “Handelsblatt”, a cross-party group is proposing the dissolution of the current unified electricity bidding zone across Germany.
The initiative is supported by prominent leaders including Hamburg’s First Mayor Peter Tschentscher (SPD), Schleswig-Holstein’s Minister President Daniel Günther (CDU), Bremen’s Mayor Andreas Bovenschulte (SPD) and Brandenburg’s Minister President Dietmar Woidke (SPD). They anticipate that differentiated pricing zones could lead to lower electricity costs for their respective regions, potentially at the expense of consumers in states like Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, where prices could rise.
Mayor Tschentscher explained to the “Handelsblatt” that regional variations in pricing would “provide a strong market-based incentive for sensible regional expansion of power grids and renewable energy production, as well as for the deployment of innovative technologies”. Minister President Günther emphasized that diverse bidding zones would generate price signals reflecting actual regional supply and demand, allowing market mechanisms to function more effectively.
Bremen’s Mayor Bovenschulte described separate electricity price zones as economically beneficial, while Brandenburg’s Minister President Woidke suggested that a division into zones could be a solution to address slow progress in grid expansion.
Germany has faced ongoing scrutiny from European partners regarding its adherence to a unified electricity bidding zone. The Association of European Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) recommended the abolition of the unified zone as early as late April. Despite this, the current coalition government – comprised of the CDU, CSU and SPD – reaffirmed its commitment to the unified system in its coalition agreement.
