After lengthy negotiations, Germany's black-red coalition has agreed on the framework for a new heating law that introduces significantly looser requirements for homeowners and landlords. The blanket requirement for at least 65 percent renewable energy in heating systems for all new and existing buildings will be dropped, the coalition parliamentary groups announced on Tuesday. Operating bans on certain types of heating systems will also be scrapped. Environmental organisation Greenpeace called the move a "huge gift" for the oil and gas industry, with criticism also coming from the Left Party and the Greens.
"Heating becomes a private matter again, citizens once again have the freedom to decide for themselves how they heat their homes," said CDU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn. SPD parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch emphasised that an agreement had been reached on "a highly complex issue." "The new Building Modernisation Act will be more technologically open, more flexible, more practical and simpler," the parliamentary groups stated in their framework paper. The law is set to come into force "before July 1."
To meet climate targets by 2040, the 65 percent quota will be replaced by a so-called green gas quota. Under the new framework, when a gas or oil heating system is replaced, the new system must be operated using an increasing share of fuels such as biomethane and synthetic fuel. From January 2029, this share must be at least ten percent. "We will set out the further increase up to 2040 in three steps in the law," the parliamentary groups announced, adding that corresponding tariffs with a bio component are already available today.
When replacing a heating system, "the decision on the future type of heating lies with the owners, who already today predominantly opt for a heat pump or district heating when replacing their heating system," the framework paper states. The future law is set to contain "a technologically open catalogue with all possible heating options." "In future, in addition to heat pumps, district heating, hybrid heating models and biomass heating, gas and oil heating systems can continue to be installed."
Miersch stressed that anyone opting for a gas or oil heating system would from 2029 be required to use an increasing share of CO2-neutral fuels, and pay a rising CO2 price. "I have to weigh up whether I want to expose myself to that risk," he said.
The "centrepiece" of the existing Building Energy Act, municipal heat planning, will be retained, said Miersch. However, planning requirements will be simplified for smaller municipalities with fewer than 15,000 residents, said Spahn. The law on municipal heat planning has been in force since the beginning of 2024. It requires large cities with more than 100,000 residents to submit a heat plan by mid-2026, covering areas such as planned district heating supply and hydrogen network development. Smaller towns and municipalities have until mid-2028 to do so.
Miersch also emphasised that subsidies for energy-efficient buildings would remain "stable." The framework paper states that "adequate funding for the federal subsidy for efficient buildings will be secured until at least 2029." The law will also include an evaluation clause, in 2030, it will be assessed "whether we have achieved the targets, yes or no," said Miersch.
Federal Economics Minister Katherina Reiche (CDU) said the coalition had kept its word. "The Habeck heating law is being abolished. For all owners, the following will apply in future: free choice of heating, from the detached house in the countryside to the rented flat in the city."
Greenpeace, however, was sharply critical. "With these changes, the federal government is giving the fossil oil and gas industry a huge gift, massively weakening consumer protection and burying climate protection in the building sector," the organisation said. Greenpeace energy expert Mira Jäger warned: "If gas heating systems are now supposed to keep running, this will above all end up being very expensive for tenants." They would have to bear rising costs, she said.
The German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union (NABU) criticised the fact that "green gases" are not available in sufficient quantities and are more urgently needed in other sectors such as industry. The new law amounted to "clientele politics at its finest," it said. Baden-Württemberg's Environment Minister Thekla Walker (Greens) described the planned amendment as "a breach of trust towards consumers, tradespeople and municipalities." She warned of a prolonged dependency on oil and gas imports that would be "very expensive for our society."
The climate protection expert of the Left Party in the Bundestag, Violetta Bock, accused the black-red coalition of abandoning climate targets in the building sector and performing "a genuflection before the gas lobby." The Federal Association of the Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) welcomed the fact that homeowners and businesses could now hope for "urgently needed planning certainty."
However, it warned that scrapping the 65 percent quota risked the climate targets in the building sector not being met. Particularly concerning was the fact that "the installation of gas and even oil heating systems with initially only relatively low bio components" would remain possible.
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