R&D for solar thermal and for solar buildings is part of the 6th Energy research Programme of the German Federal Government from July 2011 (www.bmwi.bund.de).
Solar buildings and energy efficiency for buildings and storage is included in the sub-programme "Forschung für energieoptimierte Gebäude und Quartiere" (www.projektinfo.energiewendebauen.de). Active solar thermal systems for different solar thermal applications such as water and space heating and cooling, solar process heat, solar district heating and storages are included in the sub-program Energy optimized buildings and areas. Since 2014, the funding is concentrated in the new Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy.
In April 2016, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy together with the Federal Ministry of Education and Research started a new R&D-Programme for "Solar buildings and energy efficient cities/ areas" with a budget of 150 million € for 3 years. The input based on recommendations of about 500 experts in the research network. 6 milestone projects have been started in city districts.
Both sub-programs together with programs on towns, heat and storage recently join in a research-network "Forschungsnetzwerk Energiewendebauen", founded in October 2014 (www.forschungsnetzwerk-energie.de).
The annual budget for R&D in EnOB, Eneff:Stadt, heat including solar thermal and biomass, heating grids and thermal energy storages is approx. 100 million € in 2018.
In 2017, a broad consultation procedure for the new Energy Research Programme has been started and finished in springtime 2018. The submission of the 7th Energy research Programme is scheduled for autumn 2018. "Living labs", "digitalization", "sector coupling" are the new key topics.
Following support programmes address projects with higher TRL's: "Energy efficient building 2050" (www.ptj.de/projektfoerderung/eneff-geb-2050) “District heating systems 4.0" (systems with supply temperatures of 20 to 95°C, 50% renewable energies; www.bafa.de/DE/Energie/Energieeffizienz/Waermenetze/waermenetze_node)