Energy cost containment program: Aid to energy-intensive companies

You can now apply for the grant

To counter the economic burden on businesses due to rising natural gas and electricity prices, the federal government extended the energy cost containment program until the end of 2022.

Aid to affected companies: Energy cost containment program

The Russian war on Ukraine also has significant consequences for entrepreneurs in Germany, such as problems within supply chains and rising prices for natural gas and electricity. For particularly energy-intensive companies, this represents a burden that can even jeopardize their existence. To cushion further burdens, the federal government extended the energy cost containment program until the end of 2022.

For the funding period from February 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022, grants will be paid to interested companies. Depending on the sector of the company, the grant rate, the maximum amounts and any operational losses, three levels of funding have been defined. The goal is for companies to remain liquid when they are in financial difficulty due to high energy costs.

Applications can now be submitted until the end of 2022. Grants will then be approved after the European Commission publishes the extension of the directive.

Application requirements for energy cost subsidy companies

The companies entitled to the subsidy are those of the European Economic Area with a permanent establishment in Germany, regardless of their legal form.

If the application is submitted by an authorized third party, a power of attorney must always be presented.

The following company documents must be submitted for the application:

extract from the current commercial register
a bank confirmation for the bank details specified in the application
a bank statement showing the payment of an electricity or gas bill
Data of the beneficial owner in accordance with Article 3 of the Money Laundering Act
a business registration for dependent permanent establishments in Germany whose registered office is not in Germany
Current proof of the statistical offices of the federal Länder, in which the NACE code is included

In addition, the following evidence of eligible costs must be provided:

Invoices for the prices of electricity and natural gas in the calendar year 2021 for the individual months of production
Evidence from the electricity supplier companies of the average energy prices and the quantity of gas and electricity purchased
Invoice and confirmation of the natural gas purchased during the grant period

Finally, several statements must be made:

on facts relevant to the grants
on any affiliated companies
on the waiver of remuneration and on extensive tax avoidance
on approved grants
Notices of approval of aid granted
Statement on data processing and revision rights
Evidence of overcompensation cases

All verification sample forms and declaration forms are available at the following link: https://www.bafa.de/DE/Energie/Energiekostendaempfungsprogramm/Unterlagen_Zur_Antragstellung/Unterlagen_Zur_Antragstellung_node.html

Levels of financing of the energy cost containment program

It is divided into three support groups:

Funding level 1:

Support Level 1 Business Grants require that the company:

Which companies are part of it can be found in Appendix A of the flyer on the energy cost containment program: (https://www.bafa.de/SharedDocs/Downloads/DE/Energie/ekdp_merkblatt.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=6).

Funding level 2:

Level 2 grants require that the company:

an economic sector of the Guidelines for State Aid for Climate, Environmental Protection and Energy 2022 (KUEBLL).
it is energy intensive
shows an operating loss during the funding period

Funding level 3:

Grants by funding level 3 require that the company:

Any other questions about the energy cost containment program?

Do you want to find out if your company is eligible for grants? Our law firm will be happy to advise you.

The information contained in this article is for general information purposes and does not relate to the specific situation of any person. They do not constitute legal advice. In specific cases, this content cannot replace individual advice from competent persons.