Funding is continuing for natural gas fuel cells used for the generation of heat and electricity in the household energy sector. According to an assessment by the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), 1,134 funding applications for the KfW “fuel cell grant” 433 programme were approved in the first quarter of 2019.
The federal government has been subsidizing their installation in private households since 2016. In 2017 the successful programme was also expanded to include companies and municipalities. So far 6,660 systems have been subsidized in total.
As the most efficient form of combined heat and power, compared to an old oil boiler, a fuel cell emits almost 60 per cent less CO2. The heating market is responsible for around 40 per cent of German CO2 emissions, with a third of German basement heating systems outdated. Systems with an output range of between 0.25 to 5 kW electrical power will be funded. The subsidy comprises of a fixed amount of 5,700 euros as well as an output-related amount. For large fuel cell appliances with an output of 5 kW, subsidies of up to 28,200 euros are possible.
The KfW funding programme was prepared through field tests in “Callux”, a project under the National Innovation Programme for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology (NIP).
More information on funding eligibility and the application process can be found here: www.kfw.de/433.