EC approves PLN 40 bln renewables support program for Poland

The European Commission has approved the PLN 40 billion Polish renewable energy support program.  “The Polish support scheme will increase the share of green energy in Poland's energy mix and help the country's energy transition [and] will also preserve the global competitiveness of companies that are heavily energy dependent," European commissioner in charge of competition policy Margrethe Vestager said. Under the scheme, small energy installations with a capacity up to 500 kW will benefit from a feed-in tariff while those with capacity above that will receive a premium on top of the market price of electricity. Beneficiaries will be selected in auctions. The initiative is financed by a surcharge levied on electricity consumers. Under the EU-wide plan, Poland agreed to generate 15 percent of its energy consumption from renewables.