Does EEW Modul 3 cover the software licence, or only the sensors?

Both. The BAFA Modul 3 page lists software licences for energy-management systems supporting DIN EN ISO 50001, sensors and analogue-digital converters, control and regulation technology whose primary purpose is reducing energy demand, third-party installation, commissioning and staff training, and cloud service costs where the software is cloud-based. Rates are 45% small, 35% medium, 25% large. Status as of 22 September 2026.

Can a large enterprise apply?

Yes, for Modul 3, at 25%. The wider EEW programme entry lists large enterprises among eligible applicants, and only Modules 1 and 6 are SME-only. Modul 4 Basisförderung is different: large enterprises are not eligible there at all. Digitalbonus Bayern is limited to firms with fewer than 50 employees, and MID NRW to SMEs with a registered office in NRW.

What is the minimum project size for EEW Modul 3?

Not established. The BAFA Modul 3 page does not state a Bagatellgrenze and the Merkblatt PDFs could not be read on 22 September 2026. Modul 4's minimum of 10,000 euros per measure does not automatically apply to Modul 3. Ask BAFA or read the current Merkblatt before sizing a pilot around a grant.

Is Digital Jetzt still an option in 2026?

No. The guideline expired on 31 December 2023 and the portal was shut down on 31 March 2026. If a proposal you have received still lists it, the rest of that document is probably out of date too.

Can I fund a pure OEE or downtime-monitoring project with EEW?

Not on the EEW route as written. Modul 3's control and regulation technology line requires the primary purpose to be reducing energy demand, and Modul 4 requires a 15% cut in final energy demand. A downtime or OEE case with no energy component fits better with Digitalbonus Bayern in Bavaria or MID-Digitalisierung in NRW, both of which fund digitalisation rather than energy savings.

Home / Factory digitalisation funding in Western Europe and Türkiye: the 2026 map

Funding · Germany · status 22 September 2026

Germany: what public money a metering and monitoring project can actually get in 2026

One federal scheme pays for exactly the hardware and software a metering rollout installs. Two Land schemes pay for parts of the rest. One scheme everybody still quotes is dead.

In shortBAFA's EEW Modul 3 funds energy-management software, sensors, analogue-digital converters, control technology, installation and training at 45% for small, 35% for medium and 25% for large companies, up to €20 million per applicant. Modul 4 does not fund sensors; it routes them to Modul 3. Digitalbonus Bayern reopens 1 October 2026. Digital Jetzt is closed. Status as of 22 September 2026.

EEW Modul 3: the one scheme written for this equipment

The Bundesamt für Wirtschaft und Ausfuhrkontrolle (BAFA) runs Modul 3 of the Bundesförderung für Energie- und Ressourceneffizienz in der Wirtschaft (EEW) under the name MSR, Sensorik und Energiemanagement-Software. The eligible-cost list on the BAFA module page reads like the bill of materials for a metering rollout.

Software licences for energy-management systems supporting DIN EN ISO 50001.
Sensors and analogue-digital converters used to capture energy flows.
Control and regulation technology where the primary purpose is reducing energy demand.
Installation, commissioning and staff training carried out by third parties.
Cloud service costs where the software is cloud-based.

Rates are 45% small, 35% medium, 25% large (non-SME). The maximum grant for linked measures is €20 million per applicant. The programme framework is the Richtlinie of 25 January 2024; applications go through the FZD online portal, which has taken EEW applications since 15 September 2025. The EEW programme entry on foerderzentrale.gov.de quotes up to 60% of eligible investment costs across all six modules — that headline number is not the Modul 3 rate. Use 45/35/25.

Not verifiedBAFA's Modul 3 page does not state a minimum eligible investment (Bagatellgrenze), and the Merkblatt PDFs could not be read on 22 September 2026. Do not assume a small pilot clears the threshold — get the current Merkblatt. Separately, no BAFA page read that day stated whether the 2026 EEW budget is intact or constrained. Treat budget availability as unconfirmed in either direction; do not repeat rumours about an Antragstopp.

Modul 4 will send your sensors back to Modul 3

Modul 4 (Basisförderung, energiebezogene Optimierung) pays 15% small and 10% medium; large enterprises are not eligible. Minimum €10,000 per measure, maximum total grant €20 million. It requires proof that final energy demand falls by at least 15%, and the new equipment must replace existing inefficient equipment. Sensors, metering and energy-management software are not eligible under Modul 4 — the BAFA page routes them to Modul 3. If a consultant has put your metering line into a Modul 4 file, it is in the wrong module and you will lose a cycle finding out.

Regional money: Bavaria and North Rhine-Westphalia

Digitalbonus Bayern funds digitalisation — software, robotics hardware, AI, digital twins, simulation — and IT security, at 50%: up to €7,500 (Standard) and up to €30,000 (Plus, for particularly innovative projects). Consulting and training may make up to 50% of eligible costs. Eligibility is narrow: small commercial enterprises with fewer than 50 employees and no more than €10 million turnover or balance-sheet total, with a facility in Bavaria. Freelancers, hospitals, agriculture, public companies and insolvent firms are excluded. One application per funding area, two per company over the programme's life.

1 October 2026, 10:00On 22 September 2026 the Digitalbonus portal showed the monthly quota exhausted — „Das Digitalbonus Kontingent für diesen Monat ist ausgeschöpft.“ New applications open Thursday 1 October 2026 at 10:00. The programme itself runs to 31 December 2027. The quota is monthly, so being ready on the hour matters more than the quality of the project description.

Mittelstand Innovativ & Digital (MID-Digitalisierung) in North Rhine-Westphalia supports the development and introduction of digital products, services and production procedures, with an external service provider carrying out or accompanying the project. Maximum 50%, maximum grant €15,000. Open to SMEs and micro-enterprises (EU definition) of any sector with a registered office in NRW, provided de minimis aid over the previous three fiscal years stays below €300,000. The window runs 1 January 2026 to 31 December 2029. The process is two-stage: register for a lottery, then apply within 28 days of receiving access credentials, through NRW.BANK.

DeadDigital Jetzt is gone. The guideline expired on 31 December 2023 and the portal was shut down on 31 March 2026. Any 2026 business case, consultant memo or vendor deck that still lists Digital Jetzt as a funding route was not updated this year. Treat it as a dating stamp on the document.

The German schemes side by side

German funding routes for a metering, monitoring or MES project
Programme	What it funds	Rate	Ceiling	Status 22 Sep 2026
EEW Modul 3 (BAFA)	EnMS software, sensors, A/D converters, MSR technology, third-party installation and training, cloud costs	45% small / 35% medium / 25% large	€20m per applicant (linked measures)	Open via the FZD portal
EEW Modul 4 Basisförderung (BAFA)	Replacement of inefficient equipment; ≥15% final-energy cut required	15% small / 10% medium; large not eligible	min €10,000 per measure; max €20m	Open, SME only — sensors and EnMS software excluded here
Digitalbonus Bayern	Software, AI, digital twins, simulation, robotics hardware, IT security	50%	€7,500 Standard / €30,000 Plus	Monthly quota exhausted; reopens 1 Oct 2026, 10:00; runs to 31.12.2027
MID-Digitalisierung (NRW)	Digital products, services and production procedures, with an external provider	max 50%	€15,000	Open 01.01.2026 – 31.12.2029 (lottery, then 28 days to apply)
Digital Jetzt	—	—	—	Ended; guideline expired 31.12.2023, portal shut 31.03.2026

Sources: BAFA Modul 3 and Modul 4 pages, foerderzentrale.gov.de, digitalbonus.bayern, nordrhein-westfalen-foerdert.nrw and digitaljetzt-portal.de, all read 22 September 2026.

What a monitoring project can and cannot get funded here

Can: energy metering sensors, the converters that digitise the signal, the EnMS software licence or cloud subscription, third-party installation and commissioning, and operator training — under Modul 3, at 25–45%.
Can: a production-monitoring or MES licence in Bavaria at 50%, capped at €7,500 or €30,000. Digitalbonus's eligible list is digitalisation, not energy, so the energy-saving argument is not required there.
Can: up to €15,000 in NRW for introducing a digital production procedure, provided an external provider does or accompanies the work.
Cannot: pure machine-downtime tracking with no energy purpose, under EEW. Modul 3's control-technology line requires the primary purpose to be reducing energy demand. An OEE-only case does not meet that test, however good it is.
Cannot: sensors or energy-management software under Modul 4, at any company size.
Check before you split a quote: neither the BAFA nor the Land page read on 22 September 2026 sets out the stacking rule for EEW plus a Land programme on the same cost line. Ask both agencies rather than assuming.

Why the energy framing is the stronger one in Germany

Modul 3 pays for metering because German energy law asks for it. Today, § 8 EnEfG requires an energy or environmental management system for companies at or above 7.5 GWh/a (three-calendar-year average). Non-SMEs between 2.5 and 7.5 GWh must produce Umsetzungspläne under § 9, with external expert review and publication. Non-SMEs below 7.5 GWh do an EDL-G energy audit every four years. Below 500,000 kWh/a a documented consumption report every four years replaces the full audit. Audit completion is declared to BAFA online within two months, unless the site is ISO 50001-certified or EMAS-registered.

In Parliament, not in forceThe Gesetz zur Beschleunigung der Umsetzung der Energieeffizienzrichtlinie would move the EnMS threshold from 7.5 GWh to 23.6 GWh and make the audit duty consumption-based above 2.77 GWh, with minimum coverage of 90% of final energy consumption. Cabinet agreed the bill on 24 June 2026; Drucksache 21/8027 is dated 16 September 2026 and the first Bundestag reading was scheduled for 24 September 2026. It is not law. Until it is promulgated, 7.5 GWh applies — plan against the rule in force, not the bill.

Five things to settle before you file

Fix the module first. Metering, EnMS software and MSR go to Modul 3. Equipment replacement goes to Modul 4. There is no partial credit for filing in the wrong one.
Get the Modul 3 Merkblatt and read the minimum investment yourself. The public page does not state one.
Apply before you order. EEW runs through the FZD portal; a purchase order signed before approval is the ordinary way to lose a grant.
In Bavaria, be in the queue at 10:00 on 1 October 2026. The quota is monthly and it emptied before that date.
In NRW, register for the lottery before you finalise the scope — the 28-day clock starts when credentials arrive, not when you are ready.

Status and disclosureStatus as of 22 September 2026. Rates, ceilings and deadlines change between calls. Check the current call documentation on the agency page before you commit: BAFA EEW Modul 3, Digitalbonus Bayern, MID-Digitalisierung NRW. This is not grant advice. These sites are published by TEEPTRAK SAS, which sells production-monitoring and OEE software — so we have an obvious interest in your project going ahead, and none at all in you filing it in the wrong module.

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Questions

Does EEW Modul 3 cover the software licence, or only the sensors?: Both. The BAFA Modul 3 page lists software licences for energy-management systems supporting DIN EN ISO 50001, sensors and analogue-digital converters, control and regulation technology whose primary purpose is reducing energy demand, third-party installation, commissioning and staff training, and cloud service costs where the software is cloud-based. Rates are 45% small, 35% medium, 25% large. Status as of 22 September 2026.
Can a large enterprise apply?: Yes, for Modul 3, at 25%. The wider EEW programme entry lists large enterprises among eligible applicants, and only Modules 1 and 6 are SME-only. Modul 4 Basisförderung is different: large enterprises are not eligible there at all. Digitalbonus Bayern is limited to firms with fewer than 50 employees, and MID NRW to SMEs with a registered office in NRW.
What is the minimum project size for EEW Modul 3?: Not established. The BAFA Modul 3 page does not state a Bagatellgrenze and the Merkblatt PDFs could not be read on 22 September 2026. Modul 4's minimum of 10,000 euros per measure does not automatically apply to Modul 3. Ask BAFA or read the current Merkblatt before sizing a pilot around a grant.
Is Digital Jetzt still an option in 2026?: No. The guideline expired on 31 December 2023 and the portal was shut down on 31 March 2026. If a proposal you have received still lists it, the rest of that document is probably out of date too.
Can I fund a pure OEE or downtime-monitoring project with EEW?: Not on the EEW route as written. Modul 3's control and regulation technology line requires the primary purpose to be reducing energy demand, and Modul 4 requires a 15% cut in final energy demand. A downtime or OEE case with no energy component fits better with Digitalbonus Bayern in Bavaria or MID-Digitalisierung in NRW, both of which fund digitalisation rather than energy savings.

Sources

Published by TEEPTRAK SAS, which makes production-monitoring and OEE software. Every figure is sourced on the page. Funding rules, standards and reporting duties change: check the official documents before you budget or commit.