Most major German cities expect to move away from natural gas and criticize new heating rules

Although Germany’s new government will once again allow new gas boilers to be installed, most major cities no longer envisage using them in the long term. Municipal heating plans focus primarily on expanding district heating networks and heat pumps, while the role of natural gas is expected to decline significantly over time. Cities are also warning that changes to legislation could slow investment and complicate planning for the transformation of the heating sector.

Although Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government is pushing for greater technological neutrality when heating systems are replaced, local authorities are continuing to prepare for a gradual move away from natural gas. This is according to an analysis of heating plans for Germany’s largest cities published by the financial information portal Finanztip.

All sixteen of the major German cities analyzed, including Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne, expect a significant decline in the use of fossil natural gas in their plans. In their view, the future of heating rests primarily on two pillars: expanding district heating networks in densely built-up areas and using heat pumps in locations where building heating networks would not be economically viable.