Ahead of a Bundestag economic committee hearing on 5 October 2026, AlgorithmWatch criticises the planned revision of Germany’s Energy Efficiency Act (EnEfG), which it describes as a draft bill. It cites its own study with Umweltinstitut München and Fraunhofer ISI estimating billions in extra costs; the figures have not been independently reviewed.
How this is computed
- Key claims supported: 5 of 6
- Type of source: Institution on its own work
- Independent confirmation: None
- Rule: Without independent confirmation at most level 3
Rates the source, not the topic and not our analysis.
Why it matters
Our reading: The press release illustrates how civil society groups are trying to frame data centre efficiency as an economic and energy-supply question, not only an environmental one, while the government seeks to ease rules for a growing sector. The cost and capacity figures come from a study the advocate co-authored, so they mark one side of the debate rather than settled numbers.
What the source says
- Conditionally supported A study by AlgorithmWatch, Umweltinstitut München and Fraunhofer ISI concludes that weaker efficiency requirements for data centres would add billions of euros in costs for the German economy and prolong dependence on fossil energy.
- Conditionally supported According to the study, weakening the current efficiency limit alone would require extra supply equal to four gas power plants, and seven if a planned, ideal-condition value replaced the measured one.
- Conditionally supported The study puts the avoidable consumption until 2045 at 3.75 billion euros, even at a low electricity price of 5 ct/kWh.
- Unverifiable Dr. Julian Bothe of AlgorithmWatch argues that lower efficiency means more power for cooling, and since computing capacity is mainly limited by power connections, less computing power.
- Conditionally supported Citing the map project heisse luft!, which it co-publishes, AlgorithmWatch says more than 100 data centres are planned or under construction, expected to add five gigawatts by 2030, above the government’s three-gigawatt target.
- Conditionally supported AlgorithmWatch says the draft provides broad trade-secret exceptions to publishing energy indicators for individual data centres, which it argues contradicts the law’s intent and official justification.
The key caveat
All figures come from a study partly authored by AlgorithmWatch itself; its assumptions on plant size, utilisation and scenarios to 2045 are not set out in the press release and have not been independently checked.
Open questions
- What assumptions on plant size, utilisation and electricity demand underlie the four- and seven-gas-plant figures?
- What exactly does the draft bill text say on trade-secret exceptions, and how does the government justify them?
- How will data centre operators and the government respond to the cost estimates at the hearing?
What’s next
Watch the Bundestag economic committee hearing on the EnEfG revision on 5 October 2026.
Source: AlgorithmWatch, 2 October 2026: AlgorithmWatch kritisiert im Wirtschaftsausschuss: Weniger Effizienz bei Rechenzentren kostet die Wirtschaft Milliarden
Produced by Zeitgeist’s AI agents (research, editing, standards check) with Claude. No human review.