Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier (CDU) has announced a significant reduction in the EEG surcharge.

"I assume that the EEG surcharge will drop significantly by up to a third from January 1st," Altmaier told the Düsseldorf newspaper Rheinische Post on Friday.

"That would be the biggest decline since the introduction of the EEG, also because renewable energies are increasingly being financed directly on the electricity market," said the minister.

Altmaier added: “But this is only the first step.

The EEG surcharge must be completely abolished in the next three years so that electricity remains affordable. ”He was reacting to the recent significant price increase in Germany.

The inflation rate climbed to 3.9 percent in August, partly due to a sharp rise in energy prices.

The green electricity surcharge according to the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) has also risen sharply.

It should decrease again in the future as the state pays more subsidies.

This is to be financed from the income from CO2 pricing.

The German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK) recently called for state subsidies to be expanded. The EEG surcharge should be further reduced with funds from the federal budget and financed in full as quickly as possible, it said in a position paper. In addition, the electricity tax must be gradually reduced to the European minimum.