Gergely Gulyás, the minister of the Prime Minister’s Office, announced at the government briefing last week that the electricity generated by solar panels, which are planned but have not yet been licensed, will not be accepted by the electricity system for an uncertain period. According to EURACTIV’s media partner Telex, the government plans to suspend new connections to the grid, meaning those installing a solar panel can only use the energy they generate for their own household.

The government’s announcement is contrary to the interests of the sector, the population and the country, the Hungarian Solar Association (MNNSZ) said in a statement over the weekend.

The MNNSZ declared “the Hungarian solar industry was shocked by Gulyás’ announcement”. They said that removing the possibility of grid-connected back-feeding makes solar investments pointless for households. They also blasted the government for an announcement that contradicts the executive’s previous efforts to encourage the uptake of solar systems. The MNNSZ said a battery storage system could store at most the excess energy generated during the day and has significant cost implications.

The MNNSZ believes that with this move, the government is acting against development rather than promoting the spread of photovoltaic systems and is not helping to reduce Hungary’s significant electricity imports.

Hungary is negotiating with the European Commission over its request to access the 9.6 billion euros allocated under the EU’s COVID-19 recovery fund (NRRP) on top of the 7.2 billion euros in grants awaited from the same pot. According to Gulyás, the loan of the NRRP would be used for green energy, but for the time being, there is more demand than the grid can absorb, and the rules will have to be changed in the future.