Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens) specifies his plans for saving gas. On Friday he gave two regulations in the departmental vote. The first of the two regulations is to come into force on September 1st, the second one month later.
The regulations affect every citizen as well as companies and authorities. They should help to achieve the goal of reducing gas consumption in Germany by 20 percent. According to the Federal Network Agency, efforts to date have already resulted in savings of between five and eight percent. These savings are primarily attributable to the industry.
According to information from government circles, the two regulations should bring savings of a further two percent. Irrespective of this, savings of three to five percent should be achieved by reducing the use of gas to generate electricity.
In order to reach the 20 percent target, a further five to ten percent must be saved. Here, the Federal Ministry of Economics relies on additional savings efforts in industry and in the heating of buildings. The main thing is to turn down the radiator thermostats. The rule of thumb here is: Reducing the room temperature by one degree Celsius results in savings of five to six percent.
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Reducing the room temperature in residential buildings and workplaces by an average of two degrees would reduce German gas consumption by around three percent across all sectors.
You can find an overview of the regulations here
Regulation 1, scheduled to come into effect on September 1:
More leeway for tenants: Tenants have more scope to save energy. There are currently clauses in some rental contracts that stipulate a minimum temperature in rented rooms. This means that if tenants want to heat less, they are violating their rental contracts. Therefore, these contractual obligations should be temporarily suspended so that tenants who want to save energy and turn down the heating can do so. Damage to buildings should be prevented by appropriate ventilation behavior.
Heating ban for non-public pools: The heating of gas and electricity heated indoor and outdoor pools is prohibited. This applies only to non-commercial private pools located in private gardens or residential buildings.
Heating of public buildings: Rooms in public buildings that people do not spend time in regularly, such as corridors or large halls, foyers or technical rooms, should no longer be heated. Exceptions apply if safety requirements speak against it.
Workplaces in public buildings: In order to take into account the role model function of the public sector in saving gas, a maximum temperature of 19 degrees is to be set temporarily in public properties. The previously recommended minimum temperature for offices is 20 degrees. Clinics and care facilities and other social institutions are exempt from this.
From September 1st, monuments should no longer be illuminated.
(Photo: dapd)
Ban on instantaneous water heaters in public buildings: Boilers and instantaneous water heaters should no longer be used for heating water at washbasins in public properties, provided hygiene regulations do not conflict with this.
Lighting of buildings or monuments: The lighting of buildings or monuments that have a purely representative or aesthetic function should be switched off.
Better information about energy consumption: Gas suppliers and owners of larger residential buildings are obliged to inform their tenants early on about the expected energy consumption, the associated costs and possible savings potential, but at least at the beginning of the heating season.
Outdoor advertising: Illuminated advertising systems should be switched off between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.
Regulation 2, scheduled to come into effect on October 1:
Mandatory annual heating check: Many heating systems consume an unnecessarily large amount of energy because, for example, they are still running in the factory settings or without night setback. Anyone who subjects heating systems to regular checks and optimizes them can therefore save energy and money. This includes, for example, lowering the flow temperatures or heating less at night. All owners of buildings with gas heating must carry out this heating check. In order for this to succeed, the heating check will be required by law in the future: with a deadline until the end of the next but one heating period (2023/24).
Mandatory hydronic balancing: More efficiency can also be achieved via hydronic balancing because the heating water is then optimally distributed. In the future, all owners of large buildings with a central heating supply based on natural gas should carry out this comparison, insofar as it has not yet been carried out. This applies to companies and public buildings as well as large residential buildings with six residential units or more. In the case of residential buildings with ten or more residential units, this must be done by September 2023, and with six or more residential units by September 2024. Since this is a maintenance measure, the owner or landlord bears the costs.
Heating systems should be checked annually in the future.
(Photo: IMAGO/Wolfgang Maria Weber)
Obligation to replace inefficient heating pumps: The replacement of inefficient, uncontrolled heating pumps in buildings with natural gas heating is mandatory. Uncontrolled heating pumps, such as heating circuit pumps or circulation pumps, are big energy guzzlers.
Obligation to implement economic efficiency measures in companies: Large industrial energy consumers will be obliged to carry out certain energy efficiency measures from October 1st. This obligation applies to companies that have already carried out an energy audit – i.e. an analysis of their consumption and their savings potential – in accordance with the specifications of the Energy Services Act. Short-term measures that come into question here are, for example, replacing lighting with LEDs, optimizing work processes and technical systems, especially compressed air systems. Companies are also obliged to carry out the hydraulic balancing of their heating systems and to replace inefficient heating pumps.
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