Germany’s heating bills have tripled since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

Germans are facing a 82% increase in heating costs since 2021, when the country decided to cut ties with Russia following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Germany’s association of property managers predicts that in 2025, heating a 70 square metre flat with gas will cost 1,180 euros per year, an increase of 15% compared to the previous year.

According to the firm Techem, which analysed data from 100,000 residential buildings, heating costs reached record levels in the last four years, with a cumulative increase of 82% since 2021.

42-year-old Fernando, who lives in Berlin, illustrates this reality: his monthly heating heating bill rose from €140 to €390, amounting to an average annual increase of about 30%.

In Germany, heating is typically included in rent through a monthly advance payment that is adjusted at the end of the year. This system has led to unpleasant surprises for many tenants, who are faced with increasingly high adjustment bills.

According to Eurostat, 13% of German households now spend more than 40% of their income on housing, five percentage points above the European average and second only to Denmark.

From Russian pipelines to Norwegian gas: a costly shift

The energy crisis and subsequent rise in heating costs stems largely from Germany’s forced shift in energy suppliers. Before the war in Ukraine, Russia supplied 55% of Germany’s gas imports in 2020, mainly via pipelines that ensured a stable and affordable supply.

Andreas Fischer, an energy economist at the Institute for the German Economy (IW), pointed out that “gas has become more expensive… [because] it used to come mainly through pipelines, and then we had a crisis situation”.

Today, Norway has become Germany’s main supplier, accounting for 48% of gas imports in 2024, followed by the Netherlands (25%) and Belgium (18%).

This transition has proven more costly, not only because of the new supply routes, but also because gas now arrives in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG), a more expensive alternative compared to pipeline transport.

Fischer remains pessimistic about the immediate future, he does not expect heating to become cheaper in Germany in the short term, despite the government’s efforts to boost renewable energy. The majority of German households still depend on gas for heating, leaving them vulnerable to fluctuations in global gas prices.