EnBW: Reduction in the network access charges by the Federal Network Agency is incomprehensible
Karlsruhe. EnBW Transportnetze AG (TNG) today received the decision of the Federal Network Agency on the approved amount of its network access charges. This decision stipulates that the charges for using the 380/220 kV transmission network will be approximately 8 percent lower than TNG had applied for for 2006. The decision on the price will be valid until the end of 2007. The company deems the reduction in the network access charges to the EnBW supergrid that the Federal Network Agency has decided upon to be unfounded and legally questionable. “The reduction is based on factually and commercially incomprehensible assumptions and interpretations,” said the Board of Directors of EnBW Transportnetze AG.
Reasonable network access charges are a prerequisite for maintaining system safety. EnBW Transportnetze AG provides an extremely efficient and reliable electricity transmission grid and thus creates the prerequisite for an extraordinarily high security of supply compared to Europe as a whole. The infrastructure costs of the German electricity transmission grids required for this purpose are today already in the cheapest third when compared to Europe as a whole. This is supported by a current study of the European Transmission System Operators ETSO.
The significant economic losses, which will result from the requirements of the Federal Network Agency, mean that we will have to make further savings in the operation and expansion of the supergrid. This will make it more difficult to meet the legal obligation to maintain system safety.
EnBW is considering taking legal action against the decision of the Federal Network Agency.