German EnEfG §11 sets cohort-specific minimum energy reuse for new data centers
10% / 15% / 20% by applicable start-date cohortobserved
| Value kind | observed — Reported measurements, counts, and specifications keep the precision and scope stated by their source; an exact specification is not treated as a range. |
|---|---|
| Scope | Cohorts by start of operation: at least 10% from July 1, 2026; a planned 15% or more from July 1, 2027; a planned 20% or more from July 1, 2028. Under current law operators have two years to reach the annual average, and a §11(3) exception needs the evidence the statute names. The reuse share says nothing about the heat's temperature or whether anyone buys it. Pending, not enacted as of 2026-10-16: government bill Bundestag Drs. 21/8027 (committee hearing 2026-10-05) would keep these percentages but allow four years instead of two, count heat used in the operator's own offices and plant rooms, and exempt a site where a cost-benefit analysis shows no technically and economically reasonable heat-network connection; an exempted site must reserve space for heat-transfer plant. Being close to, or far from, a network does not exempt a site automatically. |
| As of | 2023-11-13 |
| Source | German Federal Ministry of Justice / Federal Office of Justice — EnEfG of November 13, 2023, BGBl. I No. 309; EnEfG §11(2), German Energy Efficiency Act — controlling cohort percentages and dates; German Energy Efficiency Act — statutory reuse obligation; Columbia Climate Law Blog — Kristin Weiß, From EU Framework to National Action: How Germany Regulates Data Center Energy Use, October 24, 2025, commentary on heat reuse and district-heating integration only. Cohort percentages and dates follow the official §11(2) text. · §11(2) no.2: July 2026, July 2027 and July 2028 cohorts; §11(3) exceptions |
| Review | checking…review by 2026-11-30 · standard cadence |
| Recorded changes | last 2026-09-16 · 4 revisions tracked |
| Claim id | german-enefg-energy-reuse-factor-minimum-for |
Where the guide uses it
- 3.9 Permitting, Regulatory, Environmental & the Critical Path
- 5.9 Heat Reuse & Waste-Heat Recovery (Engineering)
- 15.1 Efficiency Metrics: PUE, WUE, ERF, REF & the Post-PUE Metric Stack
- 15.5 Heat Reuse & District Heating (Sustainability & Economics)
- 15.7 Regulation, Reporting & Disclosure Frameworks
← Full numbers register — every date-stamped figure in the guide, with revision history.