The applicant’s guide for the state energy aid scheme for the agri-food sector has been published on the AFIR website (Agency for the Financing of Rural Investments), the total estimated allocation for the period 2023 – 2028 related to this scheme being of 500 million euro, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR).
“MADR, through AFIR, announces the publication on the website of the necessary conditions for obtaining the financing granted through the State Aid Scheme regarding the support of investments in new production capacities of electricity produced from renewable sources for the self-consumption of enterprises in the agricultural sector and the food industry. The session for the submission of funding applications takes place starting from November 9, 2023, at 08:00, until the deadline of November 23, at 23:59. The total estimated allocation for the period 2023 – 2028 related to the state aid scheme is 500 million euros. The average annual budget of the scheme will not exceed 150 million euros in each session,” says a MADR press release.
For the 2023 session, the allocation of 150 million is broken down as follows: 100 million euros for installed capacities below 1MW (wind and solar energy) and 50 million euros installed capacities above 1MW (wind and solar energy) .
The source of financing for the Energy Scheme is the Modernization Fund, managed by the Ministry of Energy, and the administrator of the scheme will be the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, through the Agency for the Financing of Rural Investments.
The value of the state aid is 100% non-refundable and cannot exceed 20 million euros for a beneficiary.
“We mention that for wind energy, the financing is a maximum of 1,400,000 euros/MW for installed capacities less than or equal to 1 MW and a maximum of 700,000 euros/MW for installed capacities greater than 1 MW. At the same time, for solar energy, the value of the support is up to 1,000,000 euros/MW for installed capacities less than or equal to 1 MW and a maximum of 500,000 euros/MW for installed capacities greater than 1 MW”, says the press release, according to Agerpres.
The state aid scheme based on a competitive bidding procedure is applied to projects aimed at the realization of new electricity production capacities from solar sources (below 1 MW inclusive and above 1 MW), with or without integrated storage capacities. Also, the scheme aims to achieve new electricity production capacities from wind sources (below 1 MW inclusive and above 1 MW), with or without integrated storage capacities.
Beneficiaries eligible for this type of support can be enterprises from the agricultural sector, enterprises from the food industry sector, legally established and registered at the National Office of the Trade Register (ONRC), as well as Organizations/federations of organizations in the field of land improvements (OUAI/FOUAI) , constituted according to the law.
The present scheme applies only to new installations for the production of electricity from renewable energy sources with or without integrated storage capacity, the ministry states.