The government’s “Photovoltaics on the roof” programme of subsidies for domestic and agricultural PV installations was launched on 2nd May with an announcement in the government’s Official Journal (https://www.taxheaven.gr/attachment/12169). We reproduce here the most relevant parts of the announcement dealing with eligibility and the levels of subsidy. One important condition is that applicants are required to produce a tax return and ekkatharistiko for the “reference year” which is 2021, and people who have submitted the return as overseas residents are not eligible for the subsidy. Applications are made via the website https://pvstegi.gov.gr/, which is entered with the use of TAXISNet access codes.
Article 1: Subject and scope of the programme
The “Photovoltaics on the roof” programme (“the Programme”), subsidises households for the installation of photovoltaic systems with storage system, and farmers for the installation of photovoltaic systems with or without storage system, for their own consumption with the application of net metering.
The Programme applies throughout the country, and is expected to bring significant benefits both to those who qualify and generally to the national economy.
The strategic aim is for the energy and climate objectives set under the National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) to contribute decisively to the necessary energy transformation in the most economically competitive manner for the national economy, to achieve a drastic reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, through comprehensive and cohesive programmes of measures and policies.
Given that buildings currently account for around 40 per cent of energy consumption, reduction in energy consumption by buildings requires increased use of energy-efficient and low-emissions heating systems, but also the renovation and construction of smarter buildings, with improved materials, in full accord with the principles of the circular economy. [It requires] the parallel use of alternative energy technologies to cover buildings’ needs in heating and cooling, distributed generation systems and self-consumption schemes to cover buildings’ needs for electrical power and net metering, as well as storage systems and a reinforcement of the role of the consumer.
The improvement of the energy performance of the country’s building stock is a basic priority of the National Energy Plan, facilitating the economically productive transformation of existing buildings into buildings with almost zero energy consumption, and at the same time aiming at a highly energy-productive and carbon-free building stock by the year 2050.
As regards the agricultural sector, the measures and policies envisaged by the NECP aim at exploiting its high potential, contributing to the reduction in greenhouse gases, the promotion of Alternative Energy Sources and the improvement of energy efficiency.
The goal of the Programme is the installation of photovoltaic units for the self-consumption of electrical energy in conjunction with power storage systems (batteries), which will contribute to energy saving and to approaching the 2050 specifications for nearly zero energy consumption in the building stock, as well as achieving lower living costs.
Article 2: Programme budget
The Programme budget for public expenditure on subsidising the installation of photovoltaic systems and storage systems is in the amount of €238 million.
The distribution of public expenditure for the different qualifying categories is shown in the following table.
Article 3: Qualifying categories
1. Those having the right to participate in the Programme are natural persons (households) and farmers (professional farmers or farmers in special schemes) who at the point of application to the Programme have entered into the relevant Connection Agreement for the photovoltaic unit and storage system (where present) with DEDDIE.
2. A condition for the acceptance of the photovoltaic unit and storage system (where present) into the Programme is that there exists no public subsidy for the same system (photovoltaic unit with or without storage system) from any other funding programme.
3. For categories A, B and C, the photovoltaic unit must be connected to a storage system (battery), while those qualifying in category D (farmers) can choose whether the photovoltaic system is combined with a storage system or not.
4. In the case of a Connection Agreement for a photovoltaic unit without the presence of a battery, in order to submit an application to the Programme for Categories A,B and C, the Connection Agreement must first be altered to include the required storage system.
Article 4: Conditions for application
1. The assessment of each application takes into account the consumption profile recorded in the Connection Agreement concluded between the applicant and DEDDIE.
2. Applications are submitted by the natural person (household) or the farmer designated as the counterparty to DEDDIE in the Connection Agreement concluded with the latter for the development of the photovoltaic unit and the storage system in question.
3. Applicants must have an AFM [Greek tax number], and a valid access code to the electronic services of AADE, through which their identification takes place, as well as the following:
a) In the case of natural persons (households) in Categories B and C (Category A is excepted), the natural person must have submitted an income tax return (E1) for the year 2021, either as the person required to submit a personal or joint return, or indirectly as the spouse or civil partner of such a person in the case of a joint return. The return in question must have been given clearance [ekkatharistiko].
b) In the case of farmers in Category D, they must be registered on the Register of Farmers and Agricultural Holdings.
4. In particular as regards the eligible beneficiaries of the Programme, the following clarifications are given.
a) Eligible beneficiaries in Category A (vulnerable households) are those qualifying for the Social Residential Tariff at the time of submitting the application, according to the Register of Vulnerable Customers held by DEDDIE.
b) Eligible beneficiaries in Category D (farmers), are exclusively professional farmers or farmers in special schemes, who are registered on the Register of Farmers and Agricultural Holdings.
c) Those who have submitted an income tax return for the reference year (2021) as overseas residents are not eligible beneficiaries.
d) Those who have submitted a joint income tax return for the reference year (2021) (in particular as the person required to submit a return or their spouse/civil partner) are not eligible beneficiaries if the partner or dependent child in the return was an overseas resident during the reference year (2021).
e) Dependent members who do not submit a return of their own (i.e. are not required to make their own personal return) are not able to make an application for their participation in the Programme.
5. As regards the submission of applications it is noted that:
a) Each natural person (household) is only allowed to make one single application relating to one single dwelling, to which the following conditions apply:
aa) It is the primary or secondary residence of the applicant (owner, tenant or grantee).
ab) It has an active domestic electricity supply, through which the identity of the applicant’s dwelling can be identified.
b) For Category A (vulnerable households), the applicant can only submit an application for the supply which has been declared as being entitled to the Social Residential Tariff. If the applicant wishes to apply for a different supply, it will not fall into category A (vulnerable households) but into Category B or C.
c) For Category D (Farmers), applicants can submit more than one application so long as each one corresponds to an active electricity supply for agricultural use according to the register held by DEDDIE, through which the applicant can also be identified.
d) In the case of an application for an agricultural supply or supplies, the applicant (farmer) can also submit an application for their home in accordance with paragraph a) above.
e) It is not possible to submit more than one application for the same dwelling or electricity supply.
f) In the case of rejection of a submitted application or its cancellation or withdrawal by the applicant themself, with the reservation stated in paragraph g) below, a new application is permitted so long as there are available funds in the relevant category.
g) An applicant cannot annul or withdraw an application they have submitted more than two (2) times.
Beneficiaries are obliged to verify and ensure the accuracy of the details they submit.
Article 5: Applications – Programme specifications
1. The Programme relates to photovoltaic systems for the production of electrical energy with or without injection of electrical energy to the Grid and in conjunction with a system of electrical energy storage, which are installed by consumers for net metering according to article 14A of law 3468/2006 (A’129), as applicable, on buildings (on the terrace or roof of a building), including the covering of verandas/balconies, pergolas, façades and awnings, as defined in articles 16 and 19 of law 4067/2012, as applicable, as well as auxiliary spaces of the building such as sheds and parking spaces, as defined in paragraph 96 of article 2 of the same law, or on the ground.
2. The installation of the photovoltaic systems shall be carried out in accordance with the provisions of ministerial decision YPEN/DAPE-EK/15084/382 (B’759/2019), as applicable, and will either be fixed systems or ground-based solar tracking systems.
3. The installation of the photovoltaic units and storage systems must in any case adhere to the following:
a) The beneficiary must have the ownership or the legal use of the installation site. Installation in shared or jointly-owned areas is permitted, so long as the provisions of the Civil Code and the Regulations in force for the apartment block are observed.
b) The installation must be legal according to the relevant planning regulations.
c) The building or property where the units are installed must exist legally. In the case of outstanding issues of legalisation/regularisation of the building or property, the initial declaration of submission to the law of regularisation of illegal buildings must have been made before the submission of the application to the Programme.
d) The installation of the storage system must conform to the relevant national and international standards and regulations.
4. The maximum installed output of the photovoltaic units per installation which will be funded under the Programme is 10.8 kW.
5. The storage system must have a minimum installed capacity equal to the installed output of the photovoltaic (PV) unit per hour. The maximum capacity of the storage system per installation which will be funded under the Programme is 10.8 kWh.
6. The management of the storage systems (batteries) should aim at maximising the self-consumption of the power produced by the PV unit.
During the functioning of the system (PV and battery), the power produced by the PV unit is channelled initially for the consumption needs of the beneficiary. Any surplus output is channelled first to the storage system, until it is fully charged, and secondarily the available power from the PV can be channelled to the Grid.
In periods when the output of the PV unit is insufficient to cover the consumption needs of the beneficiary, these are covered initially by discharging the storage system and secondly by drawing energy from the Grid.
Conformity to the above operational requirements is ensured by the control system of the PV/battery array during the first five (5) years from the unit’s starting operation.
Article 6: Type and amount of subsidy
The Programme subsidises a percentage of the expense of the photovoltaic unit and storage system, subject to the funding limits for the the photovoltaic unit and storage system shown in the following tables.
In the event that the applicant falls into the category of disabled people (AmeA) by at least 67 per cent, or into that of a single-parent family or a family of three or more children, the subsidy levels and maximum amounts given above are increased by 10 per cent, regardless of whether they fall into one or more of these categories. In any case, the amounts of subsidy cannot exceed 100 per cent of the total cost of the PV unit or storage system (battery). Specifically for the category of disabled people, the above increase is applied additionally for their spouse or dependent children.
The subsidy levels and highest amounts in Tables 2a and 2b are not applied on a sliding scale as regards the PV output and the battery capacity, but according to the category which the PV unit and battery respectively fall into.
The highest amounts in categories A, B and C include VAT at 24%, which constitutes an eligible expense for the Programme. If the contractors/suppliers come under a regime of reduced VAT or are exempted from submitting returns and paying tax, then the corresponding subsidy and highest amounts are set on the basis of the net value plus the applicable amount of VAT. For estimating purposes, the amount to be subsidised is assumed to be the initial cost before VAT at 24%. As regards Category D (Farmers), the highest amount does not include VAT at 24%, which does not constitute an eligible expense for the Programme.
Article 7: Eligible expenses
1. The eligible expenses of the present Programme are as follows:
a) Supply and installation of PV panels, inverter, and accessories (controls, cables etc).
b) Supply and installation of mounting system.
c) Supply and installation of PV meter.
d) Supply and installation of storage system and accessories (control board, cables etc).
e) Fees for planning and dimensioning of the system (photovoltaics and battery) and installation work.
2. In the context of the current Programme, expenses are considered eligible if:
a) they are necessary for the implementation of the physical object,
b) they are incurred within the eligible time period,
c) they are legal,
d) they are supported by the necessary documentation as required by the prevailing tax law and are suitably accounted for.
3. It is specially noted that:
a) VAT is an eligible expense (except for Category D – Farmers).
b) in rented/freely granted dwellings all the provisions are applied of European Commission Regulation 1407/2013 for de minimis state aid, which sets the cumulation limits (€200,000) in a rolling period of three financial years. The beneficiary (full owner or usufructory) is required to make a declaration of conformance to the de minimis regulation in force at the time and the other co-owners are required to produce corresponding declarations.
c) as regards beneficiaries who are farmers, all the provisions are applied of European Commission Regulation 1408/2013 on de minimis aid where, among other things, it is laid down that the total amount of de minimis aid granted by each member state to a single enterprise does not exceed the amount of €20,000 in any period of three financial years (article 3, para 2, Reg 1408/2013). The farmer beneficiary is required to make a declaration of conformance with the de minimis regulation in force at the time.
d) if the expenses exceed the maximum amount of subsidy, the extra expense must be covered by the participant themself.
e) in any case the unit must not have been connected and put into operation before the application for participation in the Programme is made.
Article 8: Implementation processes of the Programme
1. The process of installation of the photovoltaic unit and the storage system (where present) for self-consumers with the application of net metering is carried out in accordance with ministerial decision YPEN/DAPEEK/15084/382 (B’ 759/2019), as applicable.
2. Examination of the technical criteria for connecting the unit, assessment of the application for connection and the conclusion of a connection agreement must precede the application for participation in the Programme.
3. The application for participation in the Programme must precede the connection and commissioning of the unit.
4. The installation of the unit and conclusion of the Self-metering Agreement can proceed simultaneously with the application for participation the Programme.
5. The time-frames for installation of the unit are set out in the Connection Agreement which the applicant for Self-consumption has concluded with the DEDDIE. In any case, in terms of the Programme, the unit must have been put into operation by 30th June 2025.
6. The provisions of Regulations 1407/2013 and 1408/2013 apply for beneficiaries active in sectors other than primary agricultural production and in agricultural production respectively.