The European Commission (EC) has approved a €1.2 billion (US$1.3 billion) Polish state aid scheme to support investments in renewables equipment.
Under the scheme, the aid will take the form of direct grants and will be open for companies producing solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, electrolysers and key components designed and primarily used for the construction of these products or related critical raw materials necessary for their production.
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According to the EC, Poland’s scheme was in line with the conditions set out in the Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework (TCTF) as it will incentivise the production of relevant equipment for the transition towards a net-zero economy and will respect the maximum aid ceiling.
The scheme will be granted no later than 31 December 2025.
The TCTF was adopted in March 2023 – in line with the Green Deal Industrial Plan – and provides aid for measures to accelerate the rollout of renewable energy, measures that facilitate the decarbonisation of industrial processes and measures that accelerate investment in key sectors for the transition towards a net-zero economy. The latter is the measure for which the Polish scheme has been approved by the EC.
Since the TCTF was adopted, the EC approved manufacturing schemes in Hungary, with a budget of €2.4 billion – in France, with a budget of €2.9 billion – and a €2.2 billion decarbonisation grant in Germany.
Other countries – Spain and the Netherlands – have been moving forward with an incentive scheme for renewables and energy storage manufacturing. This summer, Spain published the regulatory basis for its €750 million scheme with the funds provided through the country’s recovery and resilience plan. Whereas the Netherlands launched, in February 2024, a new subsidy aimed at supporting domestic manufacturing of solar panels, batteries and electrolysers.
“Today, we have approved a €1.2 billion Polish measure to support investments in strategic equipment, namely batteries, solar panels, heat-pumps, wind turbines, electrolysers and carbon-capture usage and storage. This will help accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy, in line with the objectives of the Green Deal Industrial Plan and the EU’s climate neutrality target. At the same time, competition distortions remain limited.”
PV Tech publisher Solar Media will be organising the fourth edition of Large Scale Solar Central and Eastern Europe in Warsaw, Poland 26-27 November 2024. The event will focus on Eastern Europe with a packed programme of panels, presentations and fireside chats from industry leaders responsible for the build out of solar and storage projects in Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece and Hungary. For more information visit the event website.
