Smart meter rollout in Germany is gaining momentum

Not only the production of electricity is essential for the energy transition, but also its clever use. Smart meters are particularly central here. In some cases, the federal government prescribes compulsory installation. According to the network agency, things are getting better and better.

The nationwide installation of intelligent electricity meters is slowly gaining momentum. As of June 30th, almost 3.2 million so-called smart meters were installed in Germany. This means that there is an intelligent measuring system at 5.9 percent of all measuring points, as the Federal Network Agency announced. That is an increase of 1.5 percentage points since the end of 2025.

Electricity customers with consumption of more than 6,000 kilowatt hours per year have been legally required to install intelligent metering systems since 2023. The legislature had set a quota of 20 percent for the end of 2025 - a smart meter should actually be present in every fifth "mandatory installation case" by this point. This rate was exceeded at 23.3 percent.

According to the Federal Network Agency, the rate of so-called mandatory installation cases is now 26.1 percent. In March, the authority initiated proceedings against 434 companies that did not meet the quotas. 77 of these measuring point operators had not installed any smart meters at all. According to the Federal Network Agency, 150 of the procedures have now been discontinued.

“After opening supervisory procedures, we can now see that the rollout is making progress nationwide,” explained head of the authority Klaus Müller. “In order to quickly achieve greater system efficiency, the rollout must continue to gain momentum.”

The comprehensive installation of intelligent measuring systems is an important contribution to the energy transition. Wind and solar power can then be better integrated into the grids because consumption can be better adapted to the existing supply.