EC greenlights Greece's state aid plan for renewables

The European Commission (EC) announced today it has cleared Greece’s support mechanism for renewable electricity and high efficiency cogeneration, saying it aligns with EU state aid rules.

The EC has determined that the scheme will not unduly distort competition.

Greece presented in July 2016 changes to its renewable energy support policies. The government will provide state aid either through a feed-in tariff (FiT) scheme for small installations or through a price premium for projects with capacity above 500 kW over a period of 20-25 years.

As of January 1, 2017, projects above 1 MW will compete for support in tenders to ensure that power is produced at minimal cost for taxpayers. Plans for a pilot tender for solar photovoltaic (PV) electricity have already been announced.

Next year the Greek government will also partially open up the renewables support regime to foreign producers.

The EC expects the new support mechanism to help Greece meet its 2020 target of producing 18% of its energy needs from renewable sources. The scheme will be funded through the renewables levy currently in place in the country.

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!