Main areas of advice

We assist clients in the selection of subsidies for heat generation systems and heating infrastructure. We check the eligibility requirements and provide support from the application stage, through any necessary coordination with the BAFA, to successful utilisation. We also advise on the possibilities of cumulating subsidies.

We advise on all three forms of direct marketing: subsidised direct marketing under the EEG, direct supply in a geographical context and direct marketing without subsidies in the form of other direct marketing (also known as PPA). We assist operators, purchasers, intermediaries and traders in the design of master templates and in the negotiation and selection of the possible forms of marketing.

PPAs refer to other forms of direct marketing, whether under the EEG or completely outside the EEG. Sometimes direct supply is also referred to as such on the market. We advise operators or purchasers, intermediaries and wholesalers on the selection of appropriate contracts and also combine different contract forms for our clients, from purely financial/virtual to physical via a direct line from producer to consumer.

The "fuelling station" for mobility is increasingly shifting from the road to car parks and garages at professional and private locations with decentralised energy supply. The task here is to develop targeted concepts, create contractual structures, set up charging stations and design digitisation with a sensible metering system as the basis for functioning billing processes.

We take a holistic approach to analysing all relevant legal issues for our clients.

Although electricity and energy taxes were introduced temporarily more than 20 years ago, they still exist. Avoiding and limiting electricity and energy taxes is important for decentralised energy supply projects and their economic viability. The complexity is high, as the analysis of an optimisation needs to be based not only on the size and type of energy generation plant, but also on the use of energy and the number of participants in a supply chain.

Aecoute° lawyers have been involved in electricity and energy tax law since its inception and are able to identify the optimal conditions for decentralised energy supply projects and implement them in constructive coordination with the relevant main customs offices.

We advise energy suppliers as well as heating and cooling customers on how to pass on energy costs in leases.

We advise on the implementation of the legal requirements for the unbundling of network operations from competitive activities, including the resulting issues of structuring vertically integrated energy utilities.

With rising prices, both European and national emissions trading are becoming increasingly important for heat generation and pricing in the heating sector. We advise heat suppliers and customers on how to deal with emissions costs and how to pass these costs on in heat supply and rental contracts.

Making the most of the opportunities offered by the CHP Act can be very important for the economic viability of decentralised energy supply. Depending on the size of the plant, the fuel, the grid integration, the energy use and the supply chain to the end user, the funding opportunities and funding rates are structured differently. The effects and exclusions of overlaps with other support options and the provisions of other laws and regulations must also be taken into account.

On the cost and levy side, there are permissible options for minimising costs that can be contractually agreed.

Aecoute° lawyers were involved in the original drafting of the CHP Act, acted as experts in the legislative process, and conducted and supported numerous landmark court cases up to the Federal Supreme Court, with favourable outcomes for the respective clients.

Making the most of the opportunities offered by the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) can be crucial to the economic viability of a decentralised energy supply. Depending on the size of the system, the type of drive, grid integration, energy use and the supply chain to the end user, the funding opportunities and rates are structured differently. The implications and exclusions in the event of overlap with other funding opportunities and the provisions of other laws and regulations must also be taken into account.

Aecoute° lawyers have been involved in shaping the EEG in its original form, have acted as experts in the legislative process, and have conducted and supported numerous landmark court cases all the way to the Federal Supreme Court, with favourable outcomes for the respective clients.

In the context of the need for decarbonisation, we advise the energy, property, commercial and industrial sectors on green heating products and certificates of origin in the heating sector.

We advise real estate, commercial, industrial and other businesses on legal issues relating to the billing of heating costs in tenancy or lease agreements.

We advise all stakeholders (municipalities, energy suppliers, etc.) on legal issues related to municipal heating planning and assist in the review, drafting and implementation of district heating statutes.

We advise on the conclusion of concession agreements for electricity and gas supply networks. We also advise on legal issues relating to the rights and obligations arising from concession agreements, including the payment of concession fees. We also assist with concession award procedures in the water sector.

We advise our clients on the requirements and implementation of heat metering. This concerns both the relationship between the heat supplier and the heat customer, and the relationship between the heat customer and the tenant/leaseholder.

We advise operators and owners of gas and electricity supply networks on all operational and strategic issues relating to network tariff regulation. This applies in particular to decisions on the long-term orientation and profitability of network operation and to communication with the regulatory authorities in ongoing proceedings. Where necessary and economically viable, we conduct legal proceedings to review and correct the decisions of the regulatory authorities.

Decentralised energy supply is generally designed for a specific energy demand with definable area boundaries. Legislation distinguishes between customer systems and closed distribution networks, as opposed to general supply networks with different regulatory requirements. In addition to the legally defined areas, there are areas, properties and neighbourhoods that are in a grey area of the legal interfaces for customer installations in closed and general supply network areas. These include industrial and commercial areas, airport areas, exhibition centres, residential areas, large shopping centres and a variety of other land uses.

Aecoute° lawyers have designed, drafted and implemented decentralised energy supply projects for all types of site management encountered in practice. In many cases, effective solutions have been found in consultation with the authorities and interested parties, and in some cases legal assistance has been successfully used.

We advise the property industry and energy suppliers on the regulatory requirements of the Energy Performance of Buildings Act. We clarify legal issues regarding primary energy factors and energy requirements, as well as requirements in public and private residential and non-residential buildings.

Fossil fuels are being replaced by renewable energy sources. The direct use of electrical energy is not technically and/or economically feasible in all processes and applications. The use of hydrogen or gaseous renewable energy sources (RFNBOs) is becoming necessary in the fields of air, sea and heavy-duty transport, as well as in energy-intensive industries. Hydrogen is an energy source that has not yet played a significant role in energy supply. The infrastructure for production, storage and transport needs to be developed in line with the transformation of the gas infrastructure and the expansion of renewable energies. We advise on grid connection and grid access for storage and electrolysers. We also support the development of gas infrastructure as part of the transition.

We advise on all legal issues relating to the design of heat tariffs and prices. We assist in the drafting of price escalation clauses for both suppliers and customers. In addition to the legal assessment of price escalation clauses, this also includes the extra-judicial and judicial enforcement of any claims and litigation.

We are currently advising on issues relating to price adjustments and dealing with the gas and heat price brake, as well as the implementation of the change in VAT on gas and heat supplies.

Neighbourhood development raises many energy law issues, as the neighbourhood requires electrical, thermal and kinetic energy. We advise on the development of appropriate supply solutions through distributed generation, third party procurement, in-house procurement and the development of appropriate infrastructure.

Utilising the GHG quota can generate additional revenue. We can help you understand the regulatory framework and how to market and generate revenue from the quota. We help bundlers draft and implement GHG quota transfer and brokerage agreements.

The levies, taxes and charges imposed by the government and levied on domestic and industrial end-users are closely related to the charges for the use of energy networks. We examine in which cases special rules apply that lead to a reduction in the economic burden of levies and charges.

Although the contractual content of the civil-law agreements to be concluded in the regulated network area is largely determined by statutory or official regulations, there is a need in various areas to establish legally secure and economically appropriate solutions by means of contracts. This applies, among other things, to agreements on special charges as defined by Section 19 (2) and (3) StromNEV or Section 20 (2) GasNEV. We support market participants in negotiations for the conclusion of such agreements as well as in the conclusion of other civil law contracts in connection with the operation, takeover or transfer of infrastructure facilities

We have extensive expertise in advising on all issues relating to heat distribution and heat supply on the basis of the AVBFernwärmeV and FFVAV

We assist clients with all legal issues relating to the construction and expansion of heating and cooling networks and heat and cold storage facilities.

Owners and operators of energy supply facilities are often public purchasers who have to comply with special rules when awarding contracts. We can assist you with the relevant procedures.

Through state aid law, the EU Commission monitors compliance with the internal (energy) market without distorting national support measures or barriers. The EU Commission's guidelines on state aid for climate, environment and energy (KUEBLL) are particularly important in the energy sector. We categorise the support sought for individual projects within the aid framework and show whether it is permissible, if not under KUEBLL, then possibly as de minimis or on the basis of other exemptions

Energy storage is a key component of the transformation. Storage can be pumped storage, underground gas storage, batteries or electrolysers. As diverse as storage systems are, so are the regulatory frameworks that govern them. They are subsidised by a complex set of regulations, for example as thermal storage under the Combined Heat and Power Act (KWKG), as electricity storage through concessions in grid fees and in the case of costs imposed by the state, such as grid levies. We can assist you with the regulatory categorisation of the storage facility, such as the marketing of the capacity and the design as a producer and consumer or for smoothing profiles and offering flexibility.

Aecoute° advises on all legal issues related to the operation of closed distribution networks or customer facilities within the meaning of the Energy Industry Act. First and foremost is the legal and strategic decision on the categorisation of the infrastructure in question as a distribution network or customer facility. Aecoute's support also includes, in particular, assistance in proceedings before the competent regulatory authorities and in disputes with other market participants.