RWE expects downward trend for Germany’s electricity and gas prices in 2026

Plans by Germany’s government to alleviate the burden of high electricity costs by providing billions of euros in subsidies is expected to result in lower prices for electricity and gas this year, according to Markus Krebber, CEO energy company RWE. In an interview with newspaper Rheinische Post, Krebber said he expected energy prices to decline as a result of the planned government action. "Since the government is subsidising grid fees, many electricity customers will ultimately pay less in 2026," Krebber said. In the medium term, he expects prices to remain stable, as generation costs will decrease while grid charges increase.

The German government intends to provide relief to consumers with billions in subsidies for transmission system operators. In a report by public broadcaster ARD, Klaus Müller, president of the network agency BNetzA, said he also expects "stable or falling" prices this year. Lower electricity costs are a key way to incentivise the switch to cleaner technologies for companies and households, such as heat pumps or EVs. 

According to price comparison website Verivox, energy prices for private households already fell noticeably in 2025. The cost of electricity decreased by 8.2 percent on average, from 35.86 to 32.92 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Average natural gas prices dropped by 6.8 percent over the year, from 11.53 cents to 10.74 ct/kWh.

While gas and electricity prices remained higher in local basic supply contracts by the default provider for households that do not actively search for cheaper tariffs, prices for both are set to decline by around 3 percent in early 2026. 

"At the turn of the year, electricity grid fees decreased by an average of around 16 percent as a result of the multi-billion euro federal subsidy,” said Verivox expert Thorsten Storck. “Together with the lower wholesale prices, this creates opportunities for price reductions for consumers,” he added.