The government reported today that the first notice for hydrogen and the renewable gas generation under the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR) received 41 proposals totaling 380 million euros in investment.
On Friday before last, “The Recovery and Resilience Plan’s first notification for hydrogen and renewable gas production (Component C14 — Hydrogen and Renewables). The 41 proposals received a total of 380 million euros in investment, demonstrating the program’s success and the viability of renewable gas projects in the national energy sector “, according to a statement from the government.
The proponents of these projects asked 204 million euros in assistance for a notice with a 62 million euro allocation, according to the Ministry of the Environment.
Component C14 has been allocated 185 million euros in total. The Environmental Fund is in charge of application analysis and is responsible for handling the notice within 60 working days.
After this deadline, the findings, as well as the list of recipients and approved operations, will be made public.
The PRR, which spans through 2026, aims to re-establish economic development through a series of reforms and investments. This plan intends to boost investments and create jobs in addition to restoring the harm caused by covid-19.
The government has approved a regulation that would provide financial assistance to renewable hydrogen producers.
According to a diploma, the government authorized the regulation of the incentive scheme for renewable hydrogen and other gases generation as part of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR), which intends to contribute to carbon neutrality.
“This rule establishes a system of incentives for the production of renewable hydrogen and other gases, with the goal of assisting in the achievement of carbon neutrality during the energy transition by promoting renewable energy […] The PRR funds a system of incentives for the generation of renewable hydrogen and other renewable gases “, according to a decree published in the Diário da Repblica.
The projects covered by this system are related to the generation of gases from renewable sources, and they pertain to the development of new technologies or the use of existing technologies that have not yet been “disseminated sufficiently.”
Beneficiaries (public or private legal entities) must be legally constituted, have their tax and contributory situations in order, be able to carry out activities in the territory, have the technical, physical, and financial means to carry out the operations, and present a “balanced economic and financial” situation in order to receive assistance.
They cannot, however, have unpaid salaries or come under the definition of a “business in difficulties,” and they must demonstrate that they are not a corporation “subject to a pending recovery injunction.”
Eligible expenses, on the other hand, encompass investment costs necessary for the generation of gases from renewable sources, with the maximum amount of eligible investment being “the lowest amount of the real investment cost to be associated with the operation or cost.”
Accessory investments in renewable gas storage, transportation, and distribution, as well as technological support systems for gas production management, may be considered.
“Eligible expenses must result from the balance of the renewable gas production component with the remaining eligible costs, including supporting technologies, and these cannot represent more than 50% of the total eligible costs with the renewable gas production component,” according to the regulations.
Support is provided in the form of a non-refundable grant that cannot exceed 100% of the financing of validated qualifying expenditures, nor the restrictions set forth in the State aid laws.
The funding rate might alternatively be increased to 85% “in order to reach the PRR’s objective of 88 MW (megawatts) of total installed capacity for the generation of renewable gases.”
Support cannot be coupled with other investment grants for the same expenditures.
An electronic form is accessible on the Environmental Fund’s website for submitting applications.
This law went into effect on September 28, 2021, after being signed by the Ministers of Planning, Nelson de Souza, and the Environment, Matos Fernandes.
The PRR, which spans through 2026, aims to re-establish economic development through a series of reforms and investments. This plan intends to boost investments and create jobs in addition to restoring the harm caused by covid-19.
The PRR has a total budget of 16.6 billion euros, which is split into three structural dimensions: resilience (11.125 million euros), climate transition (3.059 billion euros), and digital transition (2.46 billion euros).
