Overview

• Grid operators paid €553.94 million in 2024 to owners of wind and solar plants for electricity that was curtailed because transmission lines reached capacity.
• Annual payouts have declined from €807.10 million in 2021 and €580.32 million in 2023, reflecting progress as new transmission links come online.
• Restrictions on power flows often occur on wind-rich days in northern states like Niedersachsen and Schleswig-Holstein, where output exceeds network capacity.
• Under the EEG, producers receive up to 95 percent of foregone revenues through an account financed by the federal budget since 2022, and renewables still yield net savings over conventional power.
• The government has launched a €2.9 billion upgrade of Berlin’s grid and the Bundesnetzagentur plans to reform electricity fees to accelerate congestion relief.