Renewable Energy Subsidy Applications to Become Significantly Easier

In comparison with earlier, Elering has significantly simplified the application process for renewable energy subsidies for private electricity producers. From August, producers will be able to simply sign a pre-completed application for a renewable energy subsidy in the electricity market’s data hub administered by Elering, where the producer’s measured hourly data can be found and which can be sent straight for checking and payouts. Earlier, applicants for renewable energy subsidies had to submit data in a table form via e-mail.

Elering’s Chairman of the Board, Taavi Veskimägi, said that the pre-completed application for the renewable energy subsidy is only one example of the many possibilities that the electricity market’s central data hub offers in the development of the electricity market. “At the moment, Elering together with its partners is developing many new capabilities for the data hub within the Estfeed project to provide possibilities for consumers and producers to engage themselves in the electricity market more effectively. Elering’s data hub is exactly the kind of central electricity market information system that the European Commission considers necessary to develop all over Europe in its Communiqué on Restructuring the European electricity market,” explained Veskimägi.

Simplifying the process of submitting applications for subsidies is first and foremost meant for the rapidly increasing number of private persons who produce electricity using solar panels. Over the last year, the number of producers who produce electricity using solar panels has doubled, and every week adds three to four new producers or subsidy applicants. In total, producers responsible for the production of around 300 megawatts of power using solar panels have expressed their interest to Elering.

Renewable energy subsidies will be paid to the producer based on the current law over a period of 12 years from acknowledgement of the production device’s meeting the requirements of the network operator. The net amount of electricity energy given to the network is considered subsidized. Producers can submit their applications every month, but if they wish, they can ask for subsidies less often and for a longer periods of time.

New instructions for applying for subsidies through the data hub can be found on Elering’s web page: http://vana.elering.ee/mikrotootja-registreerimine-toetuse-saajaks-ja-toetuse-taotlemine-3/.