German Energy Efficiency Act – Draft Amendment: What it means for Companies and Data Centers

Germany’s Energy Efficiency Act (“EnEfG”) is set for a major regulatory reset which seeks to recalibrate the existing regime by raising the thresholds for the mandatory implementation of energy management systems, easing binding savings and reporting requirements (i.e. fewer formalities), while introducing more structured audit and reporting requirements.

On 9 April 2026, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy published a draft bill to amend the EnEfG and several related instruments. The draft is expressly framed as a fast-track measure to complete outstanding implementation requirements under the EU Energy Efficiency Directive (EU) 2023/1791 (“EED”), following the missed EED implementation deadline of 10 October 2025, which prompted the EU Commission to initiate infringement proceedings against Germany, among 25 other EU member states.

What is the EnEfG?

The EnEfG has been the central piece of legislation for increasing energy efficiency in Germany since November 2023 and is the core German statute implementing parts of the EED. It obliges the public sector, companies with high energy consumption, and operators of data centers to systematically reduce their energy consumption, avoid energy losses, and make greater use of efficiency potential.

The EnEfG sets energy-saving goals to support security of supply, economic efficiency, and climate protection. While the draft amendment keeps the long-term primary and final energy reduction targets, it loosens enforcement by removing binding savings obligations for Federal and State governments and shifting focus from national targets to broader climate and competitiveness objectives.

Main Objectives of the Draft Bill

The draft bill primarily aims at aligning German energy efficiency law more closely with EU minimum requirements, and rests on three pillars:

• First, the legislator intends to enshrine the EED’s “Energy Efficiency First” principle more clearly in German law and to update related audit and procurement requirements.
• Second, the draft aims to reduce regulatory burden, particularly for mid-sized companies, by scaling back or amending national obligations that go beyond EU minimum requirements.
• Third, it seeks to improve Germany’s attractiveness as a location for new data centers, in particular by strengthening the confidentiality standards for data center reporting, more clearly distinguishing between what must be made public and what must only be reported to the competent authorities.

Key Changes at a Glance

The ‘Energy Efficiency First’- Principle

The ‘Energy Efficiency First’ principle is a core concept in the EU’s energy policy, which can be described as a holistic and cross-sectoral approach to improving the overall efficiency of the integrated energy system. Decision-makers are required to prioritize solutions that take into account security of supply and cost-efficiency, and to support the most efficient pathways to climate neutrality. In practice, this essentially means that energy savings must be seriously taken into consideration in major investment decisions with a view to whether reducing energy demand would be more cost-effective and sustainable than investing in new energy supply infrastructure, such as power plants or grid expansion measures. By contrast, the current EnEfG is rather framed around quantitative energy-efficiency targets and annual savings obligations.

The draft aims to operationalizing this principle through mandatory ex-ante assessments for the public sector and private legal entities involved in important decisions related to the energy sector or having an impact on energy consumption or energy efficiency. Stakeholders must evaluate energy-efficiency solutions, including demand-side resources and system flexibility before making any planning decisions or major investment decisions with a value in excess of EUR 100 million, or in excess of EUR 175 million for decisions relating to transport infrastructure projects.

Where such decisions require a permit under public law, the draft bill places a duty on the competent permitting authorities to ensure compliance with the assessment obligations.

Higher Thresholds, Tighter Timetables

The draft redefines the triggering thresholds and resets the clock for the mandatory implementation of (i) energy or environmental management systems and (ii) implementation plans.

• The scope of the obligation to introduce an ISO 50001-certified energy management system or a recognized environmental management system (e.g., EMAS), used to monitor energy performance and drive efficiency measures is narrowed by raising the triggering threshold from 7.5 GWh to 23.6 GWh of average annual final energy consumption within the last three calendar years. At the same time, it is clarified that the relevant management system must cover at least 90% of the company’s total energy consumption.
• The draft introduces a new band of companies with an average annual final energy consumption of more than 2.77 GWh and less than 23.6 GWh within the last three calendar years, that are subject to mandatory energy auditing requirements and more directly links the results of such audits with the obligation to develop and publish implementation plans for any end‑energy saving measures identified as cost‑effective. The timetable is substantially accelerated, such that the implementation plan is generally due within three months of completing an audit, as opposed to the current three-year deadline.

Impact on Data Centers: Relaxed PUE Targets, Co‑location Flexibility and Enhanced Confidentiality 

The draft amendment keeps the EnEfG’s dedicated data center chapter but adjusts the compliance metrics, makes the reporting framework more workable for modern multi‑tenant/co‑location models, and tightens up confidentiality and cooperation mechanics.

• PUE caps relaxed: The draft proposes higher target values for the power usage efficiency (“PUE”) of data centers, i.e., the ratio of the data center’s total energy consumption to the amount of energy required for the operation of the IT infrastructure. For data centers with a date of operation prior to July 2026, the PUE target for 1 July 2027 eases from 1.5 to 1.6 and the target value for 1 July 2030 changes from 1.3 to 1.4 (new target values still to be confirmed and marked with square brackets in the draft). The long-term PUE target to be achieved by data centers that commence operation on or after 1 July 2026 within two years of commissioning is raised from ≤1.2 to ≤1.3. Electricity used solely to upgrade waste heat remains excluded from the calculation.
• Co-location / multi-tenant models: To address the fact that operators often cannot control IT utilization in co‑location/multi-tenant scenarios, the draft adds an alternative compliance route (referred to as a “design‑PUE” concept). Accordingly, the PUE requirement would be treated as met if the data center is planned and built so that it would meet the target at ≥80% IT load (even if real‑world utilization is lower).
• Confidentiality carve-out: Trade secrets and confidential business information shall be explicitly excluded from publication obligations, while the underlying reporting framework remains intact.
• IT operator cooperation: Operators of IT are set to become subject to an express cooperation obligation aimed at facilitating compliance by data center operators with their reporting obligations.

Overall, for data center operators and IT owners, the draft bill appears to improve practicality through less strict PUE requirements, clearer confidentiality rules, and reporting obligations that are more dependent on reliable data supply from third parties.

What’s being Scrapped?

The draft bill cuts red tape in several areas:

• Waste heat reporting: Mandatory reporting and information-sharing requirements for the waste heat platform will be significantly scaled back.
• External confirmation: The current requirement for external third-party verification of implementation plans shall be removed to reduce formality and costs.
• Climate-neutral company status: This concept is being dropped entirely, with the relevant chapter refocused on enforcement and compliance.

Impact on Business Operations

The proposed amendments are expected to affect compliance and contracting practices across energy‑intensive operations, large portfolios, data center ecosystems, and public-sector-facing supply chains.

For energy utilities and industrial energy users, the most immediate effect is the reshaping of the corporate compliance “buckets”. Raising the management-system threshold to 23.6 GWh will certainly remove a significant number of companies from the EnEfG’s most stringent compliance tier, but audit duties and post-audit implementation requirements will remain central and may become more closely scrutinized.

For global corporates with significant energy needs and for investors in the renewables and infrastructure sector, the draft will likely increase the importance of contractual allocation of risks and responsibilities in connection with energy audits, implementation planning and project documentation, including confidentiality management and data availability.

For real estate owners and facility managers, the public-sector reporting framework is likely to translate into tighter data-delivery expectations in leases and facility management arrangements where public bodies are involved.

What are the Next Steps?

The draft bill is currently at ministerial draft stage and details may still change materially during consultation and inter-ministerial coordination prior to enactment. In light of the EED transposition deadline having already passed the legislator is arguing for a rapid implementation.

The issues likely to attract the most attention in practice include (i) mapping average consumption against the proposed thresholds, (ii) audit scope and documentation (given the closer link to implementation planning), and (iii) data flows and confidentiality, particularly for data centers and public-sector real estate use.