The Federal Ministry of Economics, led by Robert Habeck (Greens), has long been in favour of a gas tax. The storage facilities would also contribute to the security of European supply and thus to independence from Russian gas. In addition, it was believed that the tax did not discriminate against anyone, as it had to be paid wherever gas was extracted from the transport network.
Now the turning point. From 1 January 2025, the legal basis for levying the gas storage tax will be changed so that the tax will only apply to quantities of gas exported domestically. “Border points and virtual interconnection points through which quantities of gas exported abroad were previously included in the gas storage tax will not have to pay the gas storage tax in the future,” says the draft law, which is available on FOCUS online. The new law is intended to make it cheaper to transport gas through Germany.
The amendment to the law is also intended to facilitate the abandonment of Russian natural gas.
EU states strongly criticise gas transit tax
There was previously a dispute with the EU over the gas storage tax. Neighbouring European states complained that they had to pay for gas storage in Germany and spoke of distortion of competition. The increased transit costs caused by the tax would disproportionately affect the regions and make it more difficult for EU member states to access gas imports from Western Europe, it is claimed.
Gas storage tax introduced as a crisis tool
The tax was introduced in autumn 2022 in the wake of the Russian attack on Ukraine and the ensuing energy crisis and replaces the costs of Trading Hub Europe, which is responsible for organising the German gas market, to ensure security of supply, for example of gas. The tax not only affects companies and consumers in Germany, but also importers from neighbouring countries who obtain gas via German pipelines.