A contacting device for transmitting electric currents of a rotor part of a machine, said rotor part being formed by a shaft and/or slip ring, to a machine, and to the use of a discharge device, wherein the discharge device comprises a contact element for forming an electrically conductive sliding contact between a sliding contact surface of the contact element, said sliding contact surface being provided in order to form the sliding contact, and a rotor contact surface of the shaft or the slip ring, and a recess is formed in the sliding contact surface. The contact element is at least partly coated with an oily fluid, in particular at least in the region of the sliding contact surface.