Germany’s CO₂ price on heating and fuel: from the BEHG to ETS2

What the BEHG is

Since 2021, Germany has put a price on the CO₂ from fuels for heating and transport under the Fuel Emissions Trading Act (Brennstoffemissionshandelsgesetz, BEHG). It covers natural gas, heating oil, petrol, diesel, LPG and, since 2024, waste incineration. The companies that put fuels on the market, not the companies or households that burn them, must buy emission certificates, and they pass the cost on in the price.

The price per tonne

The price was fixed by law in the first years: €25 per tonne of CO₂ in 2021, €30 in 2022 and 2023, €45 in 2024 and €55 in 2025. In 2026 certificates are auctioned within a corridor of €55 to €65. The coalition agreed in May 2026 to keep the same corridor in 2027, because the EU postponed its own system by a year, and the Bundestag is considering the amending bill.

What it adds to your energy bills

Burning a litre of diesel emits about 2.65 kg of CO₂, a litre of heating oil about 2.7 kg, and a kWh of natural gas about 0.2 kg. At €55 per tonne that adds about 15 cents to a litre of diesel or heating oil and about 1.1 cents to a kWh of gas, before VAT; at €65, about 17 cents and 1.3 cents. For trucks, the toll has included a separate CO₂ charge since December 2023.

Sharing the cost with landlords

If you rent your premises and pay for heating, the CO₂ Cost Allocation Act (CO₂KostAufG) splits the CO₂ cost of heating between tenant and landlord. For residential buildings the split depends on the building’s emissions per square metre, in ten steps. For commercial premises such as offices, shops and workshops, the cost is currently split equally. Check your heating bill: the CO₂ cost must be shown on it.

From 2028: ETS2

The EU’s second emissions trading system, ETS2, will cover the same fuels across the EU from 2028. Germany’s national system will then pass into it. ETS2 has a market stability reserve that releases extra allowances when the price rises above about €45 per tonne in 2020 prices, which is close to today’s German level. Companies in Germany are therefore less exposed to a price jump than those in countries without a national price.

What to do now

Know your fuel use per site and vehicle from invoices and fuel cards, and multiply the tonnes by the price to see the cost today and under a few price assumptions. The measures that cut it are the familiar ones: better insulation and controls, heat pumps when the boiler is due, and electric vehicles when the fleet is renewed.

Doing it in Greener Ahead

Carbon accounting in Greener Ahead calculates the CO₂ from your gas, heating oil and fuel per site and vehicle from invoices and fuel cards, with the source behind every tonne, and compares every year with the last, so you can see what the CO₂ price costs you and what your measures save. It costs €1,495 per year with unlimited users, and you can try it free for 14 days without a card. Check the pricing page for current details.

The CO₂ price by year

The price per tonne under the BEHG.

Steps to know your CO₂ cost

A first estimate takes an afternoon.

• Add up last year’s gas and heating oil per site from your invoices.
• Add up diesel and petrol per vehicle from fuel cards.
• Multiply by the CO₂ per unit to get tonnes.
• Multiply the tonnes by €55 and €65, and by a higher ETS2 price.
• Check how the CO₂ cost is shared with your landlord.