Additional Sources of Information

How can I conserve energy at home? What can I do when my utility company raises its prices? Where can I obtain financial support for a home energy retrofit or the use of renewable energy? How much energy does my washing machine use? These and other questions are answered on the following service and information websites:

Changing providers and dispute settlement

• You can contact an independent consumer centre office (only in German) if you have questions about changing utility companies.
• If you have problems with your power or gas supplier, you can obtain help from the Consumer Service division of the Federal Network Agency (only in German). The staff can lay out your contract termination options and explain how to switch suppliers.
• The Energy Dispute Settlement Board (only in German) works to amicably settle individual disputes between consumers and utility companies out of court. You can contact the Board if you have a specific grievance.
• The EEG|KWKG Clearing Office (only in German) resolves individual disputes and clarifies general legal questions as well as questions on applying the EEG. It was established by the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety and is being carried on by the Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.

Energy efficiency and energy conservation

• You can contact an independent consumer centre office (only in German) if you have questions about private energy consumption.
• The Energy Efficiency Initiative of the German Energy Agency (only in German) provides a wealth of information on energy conservation for households, companies and the public sector. The initiative's website also contains tools for analysing your power consumption in detail.
• The Federal Government's funding database (only in German) can also provide a current, extensive overview of all the funding programs provided by the Federal Government, federal states and the European Union to support energy efficiency and renewable energies.
• The SME Initiative for Energy Reforms and Climate Protection (only in German) supports small and medium-sized enterprises in their efforts to identify and leverage energy conservation opportunities. This support takes the form of information, communication, identification of suitable funding programs, and referrals to local contacts.
• The energy efficiency expert list (only in German) contains the names of approved experts for the Federal Government's funding programs.
• Energy performance certificates describe a building's energy efficiency. They are needed whenever a property is built, sold or rented. As of 1 May 2014, building owners must provide energy performance certificate information in sales advertisements for their property. They can download a guide (only in German) (PDF, 10 MB) that describes this obligation and contains samples of current energy performance certificates.
• For information about energy efficiency labels for products, visit the website of the Energy Efficiency Initiative of the German Energy Agency (only in German).
• The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) (only in German) provides updates on current regulations and recent developments in energy efficiency labelling and ecodesign (minimum product efficiency requirements). Among other things, the BAM website lists all the products that require an energy efficiency label along with the associated regulations.
• To learn more about the fuel economy label and the obligations of manufacturers, dealers and leasing companies, visit the German Energy Agency's Internet platform for the fuel economy label (only in German). It also contains a guide to filling out the label.
• If you are a consumer, you can find and compare available energy services in the Federal Office for Energy Efficiency's provider list (only in German). If you are an energy provider, you can have yourself added to the list for free and present your various services.

Renewable energies/Renewable Energies Act (EEG)

• The completely revamped and redesigned Information Portal on Renewable Energies (only in German) answers questions about renewable energy sources and environmentally friendly technologies. Special pages on solar energy, wind energy, hydropower, bioenergy and geothermal energy contain current information and condensed background material - from commented link lists to references to laws and regulations.
• The Renewable Energies Agency also provides information about the benefits of supplying energy from renewable sources. Its main online portal is located at www.unendlich-viel-energie.de. The agency's media library ranges from videos and infographics to background papers and brochures to an image database.
• Information, advice and applications for funding under the Market Incentive Program (MAP) for renewable energy in the heating market - e. g. for solar thermal plants, wood pellet heaters and heat pumps - are available from the Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control (BAFA) (only in German).
• The Federal Office for Economic Affairs and Export Control reviews and approves applications under the special compensation arrangement set out in Sections 40 et seq. of the EEG and also provides related information. To learn more about the Renewable Energies Act (EEG), the Combined Heat and Power Act (KWK-G), the System Stability Regulation (SysStabV) and the offshore liability surcharge, visit the information platform operated by Germany's four transmission system operators (only in German), Tennet TSO, 50Hertz Transmission, Amprion and TransnetBW.

Market transparency and market surveillance

• The Market Transparency Unit for Wholesale Electricity and Gas Trading at the Federal Network Agency is being operated in consensus with the Bundeskartellamt. It collects and evaluates the data needed to monitor the wholesale trade in energy. In this way, indications of illegal conduct on the part of market players can be gathered and passed on to the prosecution authorities. Further information is available from the Market Transparency Unit's website.
• The Federal Network Agency monitors the wholesale markets for electricity and gas in line with the European Union's REMIT Regulation. The REMIT website (only in German) contains all the important information about REMIT.

Energy and electricity tax

• The Customs Administration provides information on energy tax (only in German) and electricity tax (only in German), including available tax relief.