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Last update 28/07/2026

Electricity price compensation is a state aid available to a limited number of eligible applicants. These are companies for which there is a considerable risk of carbon leakage (also called indirect carbon leakage, CL) due to high electricity consumption in their production processes.

Note

Due to the large number of inquiries regarding electricity price compensation, there are currently delays in responding. We are doing our best to process all inquiries as quickly as possible. If your inquiry is not answered in time before the application deadline, please be sure to submit your application in full, in the proper form, and by the deadline.

Equity Directive

The previous funding guideline is now titled “Guideline on the Granting of Equitable Benefits,” in which the previous subsidies are referred to as equitable benefits. For the sake of clarity, we will continue to use the term “subsidy” in some of our products.

The guidelines, which were developed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety, can be found under “Further Information.”

Another revision of the guidelines for the billing years 2026–2030 is currently being developed by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy and the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation, and Nuclear Safety.

Further Information:

(available in German only)

Nationale SPK-Richtlinie: Bekanntmachung im Bundesanzeiger, 22.07.2026

Europäische Beihilfe-Leitlinien

Application process

Submit Applications

Legal basis at a glance

To the SPK laws and regulations

Since the State aids are intended to compensate for part of the indirect CO2 costs of the previous year, they may be applied for retrospectively for that year.

The application must include a certificate issued by an accountant or a sworn auditor confirming the factual information provided.

Applications must be submitted via what is referred to as Virtual Post Office (VPS) and must contain a qualified electronic signature. For more details, please refer to our "Electronic Communication" page.

Filing period

In accordance with paragraph 6.1 of the Electricity Price Compensation Equity Directive, we have published the end of the filing period for the 2025 accounting year on our website. Applications for State aids for indirect CO2 costs (electricity price compensation - EPC) may be submitted via the Virtual Post Office NLT 17/08/2026.

Prepare evidence of environmental services in return

Evidence will have to be provided for the operation of an energy or environmental management system and for one of the environmental services in return mentioned in paragraph 4.2 of the EPC Equity Directive alike. The operation of a management system and the implementation of energy efficiency and climate protection measures shall be documented in the FMS application Nachweis ökologische Gegenleistung (evidence of environmental services in return) and confirmed by a competent authority.

If you provide green electricity services in return in accordance with paragraph 4.2.2 of the EPC Equity Directive, evidence of the management system must also be documented in the FMS application Nachweis ökologische Gegenleistung (evidence of environmental services in return) while evidence of the overall power consumption of the company and the actual green electricity proportion thereof will be documented in the FMS application Antrag SPK (EPC application). For the evidence in accordance with paragraph 4.2.2 of the EPC Equity Directive, an auditor’s certificate must be submitted; section 12j of the Renewable Energy Sources Act as of 31/12/2022 (EEV 2021) shall apply accordingly.

Guideline for the preparation of applications

For your application for State aids for indirect CO2 costs (referred to as electricity price compensation) please refer to the Guide for applicants available for download. Please take note, in particular, of Chapter 4 on environmental services in return and the explanations contained therein regarding the demonstration of compliance.

We also recommend to read the Guide for accountants or sworn auditors on how to examine applications for State aids for indirect CO2 costs (electricity price compensation) in Germany.

Leitfaden zur Erstellung von Anträgen auf Beihilfen für indirekte CO2-Kosten (Strompreiskompensation) (05/06/2026, PDF, 5MB, File meets accessibility standards)
Continuation of simplifications in the application process starting in the 2025 accounting year

Until further notice, the following simplifications regarding the EPC application process starting in the 2025 accounting year will be continued:

For companies with an expected total amount of State aid of up to EUR 100,000:

Possibility of waiving the separate audit report by the accountant (this does not affect the presentation of a separate auditor’s certificate)
Adjustment of the scope of examination from "sufficient safety" approach to "limited safety"

For all applicant companies:

Possibility for competent auditing authorities to suggest potential improvements for the subsequent accounting year as part of the downstream review of climate protection measures in accordance with section 11 BECV (Ordinance regarding measures to avoid carbon leakage by national emissions trading).
Waiver of the economic efficiency review of energy efficiency measures already implemented by competent auditing authority.
Note:If the required minimum investment level is not met, it remains imperative to check the economic efficiency of measures identified in the management system but not yet implemented.
Continuous waiver of on-site assessments as part of the third-party certification of an energy or environmental management system.

Thus, all simplifications initially introduced for applications under the EPC process for the 2024 accounting year will be continued.
Check Applications – Auditor

In accordance with No 6.1(3) of the SPK Equity Directive, the aid application must contain a certificate from an auditor or a certified accountant confirming that the factual information in the aid application is accurate. An audit certificate from an auditor, auditing firm, cooperative auditing association, certified accountant or accountant firm is required when applying for supplementary State aid in accordance with No 5.2.4 of the SPK Equity Directive.

An audit certificate must be submitted for the evidence pursuant to Section 4.2.2 of the SPK Funding Guideline (green electricity offsets); Section 12j of the Renewable Energy Sources Ordinance in the version applicable on 31/12/2022 (EEV 2021) applies accordingly. An audit certificate from an auditor, an auditing company, a cooperative auditing association, a sworn auditor or an auditing company is also required when applying for supplementary aid in accordance with Section 5.2.4 of the SPK Funding Guideline.”

Guideline for reviewing applications:

(available in German only)

Leitfaden zur Prüfung von Anträgen auf Beihilfen für indirekte CO2-Kosten (Strompreiskompensation) für Wirtschaftsprüfer*innen und vereidigte Buchprüfer*innen (05/06/2026, PDF, 688KB, File meets accessibility standards)
Check Applications – authorized audit body

In the guideline for bodies authorized to carry out audits, we explain how the companies' declarations on their environmental offsets are to be checked and confirmed. Proof of compliance with the requirements under sections 4.1 and 4.2 of the SPK funding guideline must be confirmed by an auditing body within the meaning of Section 12 (3) sentence 2 BECV.

Guideline for bodies authorized to carry out audits:

(available in German only)

Ökologische Gegenleistungen: Leitfaden für prüfungsbefugte Stellen

Electronic Application

Please use the data collection software in the form management system (FMS) for your application.

Since the 2023 accounting year, applications for State aids for electricity price compensation have been made up of two parts.

For submitting your application, you will have to use two separate FMS applications:

1. “Electricity price compensation”: the FMS application previously used to record the application data

and

2. “Proof of environmental offsets”: A separate FMS application for the proof of environmental offsets as a prerequisite for the granting of aid in accordance with point 4 of the SPK funding guideline in conjunction with sections 10 and 11 BECV in accordance with the provisions of these guidelines or the guidelines for bodies authorized to carry out audits.

For your information, we provide you with an FMS manual for using the software as well as the “XSD”, the schema of the XML file, and the catalogs used. Using the schema of the XML file, you can import relevant data that you already manage in your own databases or software programs into DEHSt's FMS via a data interface.

Application procedure — Source: Deutsche Emissionshandelsstelle (DEHSt) im Umweltbundesamt

Centralized user administration

To start the application process, please create a new user account if you have not already done so in the previous year. You can then use this in both FMS applications, “Electricity price compensation 2024” and “Proof of ecological offsetting 2024”. In addition, this account is also valid for the FMS application “Carbon leakage compensation” in national emissions trading (BEHG, BECV). You therefore only need one account in the FMS and can use it to access all three applications. If you already have an account in the BEHG area of the FMS, you can use this and do not need to create a new account. Please refer to the information on the welcome pages of the FMS applications.

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Request reference number

Companies submitting an application for the first time will turn to the German Emissions Trading Authority soonest to request a reference number and a facility reference number for each facility. If your company has already been issued a reference number and you would like to submit an application for a new facility, please request a separate reference number for the facility in question.

Please send us your reference number request informally via the Virtual Post Office (VPS).

Electronic communication

All applications will be submitted via the Virtual Post Office (VPS).

You will need a qualified electronic signature card (QES) to submit your application for State aids. You can purchase this signature card from various German trust service providers.

The qualified electronic signature requires a signature card and a card reader.

Purchasing and activating the signature card and the required card reader can take up to three months. Please plan accordingly.

More about electronic communication

FMS application software

This year, too, all applications will be submitted digitally via the form management system (FMS). Please note that, as in the previous year, the application is made up of two parts. In addition to the request for State aids, it must contain either evidence of the environmental services provided in return or a declaration of commitment. A declaration of commitment will be submitted by applicants whose products fall under the new sectors (see Annex I, Table 2 of the European Aid Guidelines) and who either do not have an energy management system or have not yet implemented all the economic measures identified for 2025. The exact requirements are explained in detail in our Guide Antragstellung SPK (Submitting EPC applications).

Further information:

Formular-Management-System (FMS) - Strompreiskompensation

SPK Datenerfassung

Information for applicants who already submitted EPC applications in previous years

Check bank details

In order to ensure a smooth payment process, please ensure that the bank details provided in the application are up to date. In case bank details change after the application has been submitted, this must be communicated to us immediately by means of a signed message via the Virtual Post Office (VPS).

Information in the decision notice

Please note any information included in the decision notice your received regarding your last application, in particular referring to data to be corrected in the FMS for the following years.

Data backup

We strongly recommend to perform a data backup of the last valid version of your application and the evidence of environmental services provided in return from the past year.

Eligible Sectors

Electricity price compensation is State aid for a limited group of eligible applicants. These are companies facing a significant risk of carbon leakage due to their production processes characterised by high electricity consumption and referred to as indirect carbon leakage (CL). However, this risk is not analysed individually. The State Aid Guidelines (Annex I) of the European Commission defines which sectors and subsectors are particularly at risk and therefore eligible for aid.

The eligibility of a company to apply is determined by the products manufactured, however, the allocation of a company to a specific economic sector is not critical. An application for State aid can only be made for products that are allocated to one of the sectors or subsectors listed, but it does not extend to further processing into products that are not eligible for aid.

Table 1: List of sectors and subsectors eligible for aid according to NACE Revision 2.1, in accordance with the 2025 State Aid Guidelines (Annex I, Table 1, “old sectors”)
Sectors according to NACE Revision 2.1	Description
1424	Manufacture of leather clothing and fur goods
1711	Production of wood and cellulose
1712	Production of paper, cardboard and paperboard
1920	Manufacture of petroleum products and fossil fuels
2011 (Teile)	Parts of the industrial gas production sector 20111150 Hydrogen 20111290 Inorganic oxygen compounds of non-metals
2013	Production of other inorganic raw materials and chemicals
2016 (Part)	Part of the plastics primary forms manufacturing sector 20164015 Polyethylene glycols and other polyether alcohols, in primary forms
2314 (Parts)	Parts of the sector Manufacture of glass fibers and articles thereof 23141210 Mats made of glass fibers 23141230 Glass fiber nonwovens
2410	Production of pig iron, steel, and ferroalloys
2442	Production and initial processing of aluminum
2443	Production and first processing of lead, zinc and tin
2444	Production and first processing of copper
2445	Production and initial processing of other non-ferrous metals
2451	Iron foundries

Table 2: List of sectors and subsectors eligible for aid under NACE Revision 2.1, in accordance with the 2025 EU State Aid Guidelines (Annex I, Table 2, “new sectors”)
Sectors according to NACE Revision 2.1	Description
0710	Iron ore mining
0729	Other non-ferrous metal ore mining
1041	Manufacture of oils and fats (excluding margarine and similar edible fats)
1106	Malt production
1310	Fiber processing and spinning
1395	Manufacture of nonwoven fabrics and non-ready-to-wear products made from them (excluding apparel)
1621	Manufacture of veneer, plywood, fiberboard, and particleboard
2012	Manufacture of dyes and pigments
2014	Manufacture of other organic basic materials and chemicals
2015	Manufacture of fertilizers and nitrogen compounds
2016	Manufacture of plastics in primary forms
2017	Production of synthetic rubber in primary forms
2059 (Teil)	Part of the “other chemical products, n.e.c.” sector 20595670 Mixtures of alkylbenzenes and alkylnaphthalenes (excluding those of HS headings 2707 and 2902)
2060	Manufacture of synthetic fibers
2311	Manufacture of flat glass
2313	Manufacture of hollow glass
2314	Manufacture of glass fibres and products made from them
2331	Manufacture of ceramic wall and floor tiles and slabs
2399 (Teil)	Part of the sector of other nonmetallic mineral products, n.e.c. 23991910 Refractory wool, rock wool, and similar mineral wools (excluding glass wool), whether or not mixed together, in bulk, in slabs, or in rolls
2431	Manufacture of blank steel
2434	Manufacture of cold-drawn wire
2720	Manufacture of battery and rechargeable battery products

Manuals and assistance

Revision of the Guidance Document for Iron Foundries
We have updated the guidance document for iron foundries. The sections in Chapters 4 and 5 regarding the reporting of production volumes for the intermediate product cast iron and direct emissions have been editorially revised for greater clarity.