The RO-Energy programme, with a total budget of EUR 62.8 million, is expected to open in March 2018, according to latest public information from Innovation Norway, the Fund Operator for this programme in Romania.
The programme will open a new funding opportunity for private sector enter promoting projects in the areas of “Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, Energy Security” (RO‐Energy) and its objective is “Less carbon intensive energy and increased security of supply”. NGOs and public-sector organizations will also be eligible to submit applications.
Bilateral project partnerships are encouraged in several focus areas:
- Increased Renewable Energy production capacity – targets investments in increased production of renewable energy from various sources, i.e. hydropower, geothermal, biomass/biogas, wind and solar.
- Increased energy efficiency and reduced emissions in all sectors – targets investments in measures such as (the list is not exhaustive): increased energy efficiency in buildings (renovation, building system upgrade, smart buildings), in the transport sector (public transport like electric busses or busses powered by biogas), implementation of modern technologies and ICT that lead to energy efficiency, increased energy performance of production processes and products.
- R&D within the energy sector – aims to contribute towards increased cooperation between research institutions and enterprises, as well as to Industrial and experimental research projects, that deliver impact during the programme lifetime. The programme will address TRL4-TRL9 projects: technology validation in lab and relevant environment, prototypes, demo and pilot projects, system qualification and making the technology ready for the market.
- Electrification of households – targeting not‐profitable projects from an investor’s point of view (Net Present Value negative and Pay‐Back Time more than 20 years). E.g. electrification of 10,000 households without access to electricity, based on an existing pre-feasibility study.
- Awareness raising about benefits of renewable energy and energy efficiency
Specifically, the programme targets greenhouse gas reductions and/or avoidance through energy efficiency measures, which shall deliver considerable reductions at a reasonable cost; the aim should be a maximum of EUR 150 grant per tonne CO2 equivalent per year reduced/ avoided.
The programme will run in 2 funding streams: EUR 50,000 – 200,000 and EUR 1,5 million. Applicable funding intensities will vary between 15%-70% for enterprises (standard General Block Exemption Regulation) and going up to 85% for public authorities and 90% for NGOs.
