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English - What is the mission of the «Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG»?

Dear Visitor,

welcome to Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG!

The Clearingstelle clarifies certain disputes and questions arising under the EEG (the abreviation for “Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz” or “The Renewable Energy Sources Act“) and the KWKG  (short for “Kraft-Wärme-Kopplungsgesetz“ or “Combined Heat and Power Act“).

The Renewable Energy Sources Act increases the use of Renewable Energies whereas the Combined Heat and Power Act pushes combined heat and power (CHP). This is being achieved by establishing the core elements of a support system:

  • First, the act provides for priority access to the grid system of electricity produced from renewable energy sources or with a combined heat and power plant;
  • second, such electricity has to be purchased, transmitted, and distributed with priority;
  • third, a market premium, or feed-in tariff for electricity produced by rather small renewable power plants or small and big CHP plants, has to be paid by grid operators. Big renewable power plants and medium size CHP plants have to participate in a tender.

Also ambiguities within the MsbG (“Messstellenbetriebsgesetz“ or “Metering Point Operation Act“) concerning power plants supported by the schemes of the EEG or KWKG lie within the competence of the Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG.

The Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG has nothing to do with a clearing house as known in financial services. Rather, section 81 of the Renewable Energy Sources Act ("EEG") 2023 and section 32a of the Combined Heat and Power Act ("KWKG") 2023 define the purpose of the Clearingstelle as a facilitator, helping "to avoid and to settle any disputes".

The ordinary courts usually settle disputes through litigation that is often costly and time consuming. However, the Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG offers alternative dispute resolution options that may prove more efficient and cost-effective to settle disputes. Such options include mediation, joint dispute resolution, arbitration. Thereby, opposing parties can avoid costly litigation and  lengthy court action, but yet achieve a feasible and mutually acceptable solution. This is usually achieved through one of the following formal Alternative Dispute Resolution (or  out-of-court dispute settlement) procedures:

  1. moderated discussions (mediation)
  2. assessment of the matters of fact and the legal situation in individual cases (’Vote Action’)
  3. arbitration under the code of civil procedure

Furthermore, the Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG provides general advice on how to apply the provisions of the Renewable Energy Sources Act and the Combined Heat and Power Act. This outreach helps to avoid problems before they occur. Thus, in particular plant and grid operators may benefit from our services by avoiding disputes. This is achieved through one of the following procedures:

  1. assessment of the legal situation upon request of an ordinary court with pending action (’Advisory Action’)
  2. general clarification on questions of application or legal interpretation (’Recommendation Action’, or – in less complex cases – ’Indication Action’).

Energy industry associations and public authorities may also take part in procedures of fundamental significance.

The Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG is commissioned and partly funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action. The staff of the Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG consists of an interdisciplinary team of lawyers and engineers with expertise in the field of renewable energies as well as office and IT staff.

Please notice that our service is only for grid operators, plant operators, direct sellers and metering point operators enforcing their claims from EEG or KWKG. We do not settle disputes concerning administrative authorisation, i.e. all processes that pertain to the developer obtaining a license to construct the installation, (e.g. a building permit, an environmental permission including an Environmental Impact Assessment or a technology-specific permission, for example, a water use permit for hydro-power plants or a radar permit for wind power plants).

You will find more information in English on Renewable Energies in Germany at the following websites of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy:

https://www.bmwk.de/Redaktion/EN/Dossier/renewable-energy.html

If you are interested in learning about the different actors, institutions and stakeholders in the German renewable energy sector you may want to have a look at the database "Who ist who of the Energiewende in Germany" provided by the Federal Foreign Office available at

https://www.renac.de/who-is-who/ 

Renewable energy policy database and support website provides furthermore comparative overview on European support schemes:

http://www.res-legal.eu/

If you need further information, please feel free to send an e-mail to post[at]clearingstelle-eeg-kwkg.de or send a letter to our postal address:

Clearingstelle EEG|KWKG
Charlottenstrasse 65
D-10117 Berlin
GERMANY