We Made a Proposal to Alleviate the Conditions for the Aid Measures for Renewable Energy Production Equipment Subscription

The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication has developed a draft regulation that allows companies applying for aid for the subscription of renewable energy production equipment to the distribution or transmission network in industrial and connected areas.  

According to the draft act, the supportable expenses are the construction expenses and other related investment expenses for the subscription of renewable energy production equipment to the distribution or transmission network, as a result of which subscription capacity is created to connect the renewable energy production equipment to the distribution or transmission network. Applicants can organise the works necessary for ensuring subscription capacity through network operator or carry them out on their own. 

Aid is not granted for erecting renewable energy production units. Furthermore, this measure is not set up for supporting connecting production equipment to a closed distribution network or direct line. 

The minimum requirement for the renewable energy production capacity must be decreased 
The draft act provides that production capacity of the renewable energy production equipment connected to the distribution or transmission network with the help of the aid must be at least one megawatt. The Chamber has sent to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication a letter in which we informed that the one megawatt requirement is unreasonably strict and would limit the granting of the aid. There are very few cases where an industrial company would like to connect to the distribution or transmission network their renewable energy production equipment the production capacity of which is one megawatt or higher. Therefore, we made a proposal that the production capacity required should be 200 kilowatts or less instead of one megawatt.  

According to the draft act, the maximum amount of aid is €230,000 per each megawatt connected to the distribution or transmission network with the help of the aid. The maximum share of the aid in the supported expenses of a project is within 30 to 50 percent. The total budget of the support measure is €7 million. 

At the moment it is not known when the support measure will enter into force and the application round will open. In all likelihood, the regulation will enter into force in the coming months. 

The draft act on the support measure for the subscription of renewable energy production equipment is available HERE.