What goes on in Poland on the 4th of March.
The energy sector might use EUR 2-4.8 billion from the Modernization Fund
The government adopted a draft amending the act on the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading system and certain other acts, submitted by the Minister of Climate and Environment. The changes will enable domestic entities to use the Modernization Fund, which collects money from the sale of CO2 emission allowances, and allocate it to the modernization of the energy sector.
The draft adjusts Polish law to the European Union regulations on the principles of the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading system in the years 2021-2030. Thanks to the changes, Poland will be able to benefit from the EU Modernization Fund, the funds of which are intended for the modernization of the energy system and improvement of energy efficiency in EU countries.
As part of supporting the implementation of the objectives of the European Union’s energy and climate policy until 2030, the European Commission has created a new instrument to support the modernization of the energy system and the improvement of energy efficiency in EU countries. This applies to EU countries where the GDP per capita is lower than 60 percent of the average for the entire EU (compared to 2013).
The supporting instrument is called the Modernization Fund and it will operate in the years 2021-2030. The fund consists of funds from the sale of 2 percent of the total pool of emission allowances under the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS). Money from the Modernization Fund will be distributed to 10 member states, of which Poland will receive 43.4 percent of the available pool of funds. The regulations took into account the procedure of applying for support from the Modernization Fund. It provides for the submission of applications for co-financing, their selection, conclusion of an agreement for co-financing of the project, as well as documenting its implementation and the progress achieved.
„The funds from the Modernization Fund will be used by entrepreneurs and public finance sector entities that carry out investments eligible for co-financing,” the statement after the government meeting said. The operator of the Modernization Fund will be the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management (NFOŚiGW). The first applications for project co-financing are to be submitted to the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management in 2021.