Heating allowance for electricity users
A heating allowance for those who will heat their homes this year with electricity, a special tariff for those with many children, free electricity for vulnerable households through the Apollo program, as well as a strict framework for electricity theft and strategic defaulters, comprise the package of measures to reduce of energy costs that Environment and Energy Minister Thodoros Skylakakis presented on Tuesday to the cabinet and is expected to announce on Wednesday at a press conference.
The heating allowance will be given according to the same criteria (income, geographical and temperatures) as the heating oil allowance and will be set at corresponding levels.
The measure will apply throughout the winter season – i.e. until April 2024 – and will concern electricity bills with consumption during this period.
According to information, the beneficiaries will initially be paid an advance payment, while in order to complete the granting of the allowance, two paid bills must be posted on an electronic platform and their total value should be at least twice the amount of the allowance. If the sum of the two accounts is smaller, the subsidy will be adjusted accordingly. The quota is introduced to ensure that the allowance covers heating needs.
The minister is also expected to announce a special tariff for those with many children, which, according to sources, will provide for income criteria, but not property criteria, such as those currently in force in the social tariff, which are estimated to cover the majority of those with many children.
In addition, Skylakakis will also announce the Apollo program, aimed at the country’s municipalities and concerning the production of cheap energy for offering free electricity to energy-vulnerable households, to be produced by 11 photovoltaic parks with a total capacity of 1.1 gigawatts.
The participation of the municipalities in the program will take place after an invitation to participate, since the power of the 11 photovoltaic parks is not sufficient for all the municipalities of the country. Some 30-35% of the electricity produced will be directed to the energy-vulnerable consumers of each municipality, while the rest will be used to reduce the cost of energy for municipal businesses and infrastructure.
