Innovation, Grants & Incentives Alert: Supporting energy transition

The call is aimed at medium-sized enterprises. Funding will be available for thermal modernization of buildings (other than residential ones), improving the energy efficiency of production processes, increasing the energy efficiency of utility circulation systems in plants (i.e., cold or hot water, compressed air or ventilation systems) and transport routes, and increasing the energy efficiency of auxiliary systems, including boiler rooms, and systems recovering heat from industrial processes or lighting. The projects can also cover installation of renewable energy devices, as well as installation of devices for the production, storage, refuelling or transport of hydrogen.

The scope of activities to be supported in terms of buildings, technical equipment and/or technological installations and processes must result from energy audits. Furthermore, the following criteria must be met:

• Achieving primary energy savings of 30% through improved energy efficiency in buildings.
• Achieving primary energy savings of 10% through improved energy efficiency in technological processes and lines.

The total amount allocated for the call is ca. PLN 100 million. Applications are accepted from 23 August to 12 December 2024. The financing is to take form of preferential loans with a possibility of partial redemption of up to 49%. In addition, the project must be financed through a loan provided on market terms (in the amount enabling to achieve, in total, 100% of eligible costs). Applications are to be submitted to the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

A similar call for large entities is also planned.

The call is aimed at companies (SMEs, small mid-caps, and mid-caps).

Its goal is to support activities to promote transition towards increased energy efficiency of businesses, including thermal modernization of buildings and modernization/replacement of the existing infrastructure for improved energy efficiency. The modernization must result in a reduction of primary energy consumption in the upgraded area by at least 30% compared to current consumption.

The total allocated amount for this call is PLN 660 million. The subsidy will take form of an environmental bonus, i.e., a refund of a part of the principal of a green loan intended to cover eligible investment costs. The aid intensity depends on the type of expense, company size, and the investment location, amounting up to as much as 80%. The maximum total eligible costs, however, cannot exceed PLN 50 million. Applications are accepted from 17 October 2024 to 31 January 2025. The call is handled by Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego.

The call is aimed at all enterprises.

Under the program, support will be allocated to projects related to:

1. construction, reconstruction, modernization and expansion of renewable energy sources for biomethane production, including connection to the gas grid (excluding stand-alone biomethane storage units);
2. construction and/or expansion of renewable energy sources for electricity and/or heat production from biogas along with energy storage facilities dedicated to a given RES source and connection to the grid, including infrastructure enabling the use of co-generated heat. Infrastructure should be understood as a connection to the grid of an operator or a third party that is not an operator.

The total amount allocated for this call is over PLN 376 million.

Importantly in the “RES: wind and solar energy” area, the project must be financed through a redeemable preferential loan and a loan provided on market terms, in the amount enabling to achieve, in total, 100% of eligible costs. Proportionate financing of investment projects is assumed, i.e. financing of 79.71% of eligible costs under the redeemable preferential loan and financing of 20.29% of eligible costs under the loan on market terms. Redemption may be granted once the project has been implemented under the terms of the call documentation and the investment contract, and after the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management has confirmed the achievement of the anticipated environmental effect. The redeemed amount, up to 15% of the preferential loan, depends on the efficiency of the RES installed as part of the project.

Moreover, in the “Other RES, including geothermal power plants, biogas and biomethane plants, and hydropower plants” area, the project must be financed through a grant, a preferential loan and a loan on market terms, covering a total of 100% of eligible costs. Proportionate financing of investment projects is assumed, i.e., financing of 79.71% of eligible costs under the grant and preferential loan, provided that the grant does not exceed 49% of the costs, and financing of 20.29% of eligible costs under the loan on market terms.

Subsidy applications may be submitted from 23 August to 12 December 2024. The call is handled by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The call is aimed at enterprises and/or public sector entities engaged in implementation of offshore wind farm construction projects as well as companies that are direct or indirect owners or co-owners of project-implementing entities (i.e., special purpose vehicles that are directly involved in the construction of offshore wind farms).

Under the program, support will be allocated to projects related to:

• investments aimed at reducing pollution and CO2 emissions through increased share of low-emission energy sources, including offshore wind farms. Eligible costs include, in particular, the costs of construction, delivery and assembly of an offshore wind farm (excluding onshore infrastructure components), turbines, foundations, offshore wind farm power take-off point, along with expenditures for offshore substations, cables, and the cost of installation of both offshore wind farm components and installation of power take-off infrastructure. The minimum rated capacity potential of installed turbines in an offshore wind farm in a single project must be at least 300 MW.

The funding will take form of a loan, the maximum value of which depends, inter alia, on funds’ availability and the proposed financing structure. The call for applications is open and continuous. It may end or be suspended, however, in the event of fund depletion. The final deadline for signing a loan contract is 31 August 2026.The loans will be granted by Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego.

The call is aimed at private and/or public bodies and consortia seated in a Member State or a country associated with the European Union.

Under the program, support will be allocated to projects related to:

• construction of a publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for light-duty vehicles on the TEN-T road network or within 3 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road. The recharging points need to offer a power output of at least 150KW;
• Construction of a publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for heavy-duty vehicles on the TEN-T road network or within 3 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road, including on safe and secure parkings, and in TEN-T urban nodes. The recharging points need to offer a power output of 350KW;
• construction of a publicly accessible recharging infrastructure for heavy-duty vehicles on the TEN-T road network or within 3 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road, including on safe and secure parkings, and in TEN-T urban nodes. It must be equipped with at least 4 recharging points having each a minimum power output of 1MW;
• construction of publicly accessible hydrogen refuelling stations for light-duty vehicles and/or heavy-duty vehicles on the TEN-T road network or within 10 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road and in TEN-T urban nodes;
• construction of hydrogen refuelling stations for public transport in TEN-T urban nodes;
• electrification and development of recharging and hydrogen refuelling stations in TEN-T inland waterway and maritime ports areas;
• electrification of airport ground operations and development of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure in TEN-T airports;
• deployment of hydrogen refuelling stations for shunting locomotives in TEN-T railway terminals.

The total amount allocated for this call is EUR 1 billion, and the minimum amount that can be applied for is EUR 1 million. The maximum grant amount is 70% of the eligible costs. The second phase of the pre-qualification stage in Poland ends on 17 February 2025. Pre-qualification applications are accepted by the Ministry of Development Funds and Regional Policy.

The call is aimed at entrepreneurs conducting business activity in the field of heat generation or heat and electricity generation, implementing the project as part of a district heating system, with the ordered thermal power, as at the date of submission of the application, below 50 MW.

Support will be granted for investments related to the construction and/or reconstruction of generating units with a total installed capacity of not less than 1 MW, operating in conditions of high-efficiency cogeneration (excluding energy generated in a coal-fired cogeneration unit) and connecting them to the grid in which energy is produced by using:

• waste heat,
• energy from renewable sources,
• gaseous fuels,
• gas mixtures,
• synthetic gas or
• hydrogen.

The financing can also take form of a loan for up to 100% of eligible costs, while the financing in the form of a grant is to cover 50% of eligible costs. The call is scheduled for the period November 2024 - May 2025. Applications are to be submitted to the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The beneficiaries of the program will be entrepreneurs conducting business activity in the field of energy generation, with an installed thermal and/or electrical capacity of energy sources of at least 50 MW, implementing a project as part of a heating system, with the ordered capacity, as at the date of submission of the application, of no less than 50 MW. Support will be granted for investments related to the construction and/or reconstruction of generating units with a total installed capacity of not less than 10 MW, operating in conditions of high-efficiency cogeneration (excluding energy generated in a coal-fired cogeneration unit) and connecting them to the grid in which energy is produced by using:

• waste heat,
• energy from renewable sources,
• gaseous fuels,
• gas mixtures,
• synthetic gas or
• hydrogen.

The financing can also take form of a loan for up to 100% of eligible costs, while the financing in the form of a grant is to cover 50% of eligible costs. The call is scheduled for the period November 2024 - May 2025. Applications are to be submitted to the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

In addition, congregation projects can still seek funding under the “Cogeneration for Energy and Industry” call, started on 22 April 2024, ending on 19 December 2024. The beneficiaries of the program are both all entrepreneurs as well as entities conducting business activity in the field of energy generation (with an installed thermal and/or electric capacity of energy sources of at least 50 MW). The aim of the program is to support investments in construction and/or expansion of co-generating units operating in conditions of high-efficiency cogeneration;

• for all enterprises: generating units with a total installed capacity of not less than 0.5 MW, the maximum intensity of aid in the form of grant is 65% of the eligible costs (in addition, it is mandatory to take out a loan to achieve, in total, 100% of eligible costs, but not more than PLN 300 million).
• for power industry enterprises: generating units with a total installed capacity of not less than 10 MW, the maximum intensity of aid in the form of grant is 50% of the eligible costs (in addition, it is optional to take out a loan to achieve, in total, 100% of eligible costs, but for not more than PLN 300 million).

The total amount allocated for this call is almost PLN 3.5 billion (including almost PLN 1.5 billion in the form of grants). Applications are accepted on a continuous basis, until the funds are exhausted. 

The call is aimed at power cooperatives and their members-entrepreneurs, power cooperatives under formation (cooperatives, farmers’ cooperatives), and farmers (natural persons, legal persons, and unincorporated organizational units).

Support will be granted to finance:

• investment projects related to construction of hydropower plants, producing energy from agricultural biogas in conditions of high-efficiency cogeneration, and electricity storage facilities;
• investment projects related to construction (as part of loan applications) of hydropower plants, producing energy from agricultural biogas in conditions of high-efficiency cogeneration, wind farms, and solar energy facilities.

An increase of the available funds by PLN 2 billion is planned. Support in the form of grant will cover from 45% up to 65% of eligible costs, depending on the entity and type of the project. The maximum intensity of financing in the form of loan amounts to 100% of the eligible costs. The call is scheduled for Q4 2024/Q1 2025. The call will be handled by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The call will be aimed at all enterprises.

Support will be granted to finance:

• construction of publicly available DC recharging stations for heavy-duty vehicles with least two recharging points with an individual power output of at least 350 kW for projects implemented along the TEN-T core network*; one charging point with an individual output of at least 350 kW for projects implemented in logistic centres (DEPOT), intermodal terminals or operating centres**;
• alteration of publicly available DC recharging stations for heavy-duty vehicles resulting in increasing their capacity in such a way that at least: two charging points with an individual output of at least 350 kW for projects implemented along the TEN-T core network are created*; one charging point with an individual output of at least 350 kW for projects implemented in logistic centres (DEPOT), intermodal terminals or operating centres is created**;

* along the TEN-T core network, i.e., on a road belonging to the TEN-T network or within 3 km driving distance from the nearest exit of a TEN-T road.

** in logistic centres (DEPOT), intermodal terminals or operating centres or within 3 km driving distance from such facilities. An operating centre means facilities that include at least one of the following: a parking place, a place for loading, unloading or combining cargo, and a place for maintenance or repair of vehicles.

In this case, eligible costs include, in particular, assembly and construction costs, supply installation costs, costs of purchasing fixed assets directly related to the construction/expansion of recharging stations or the cost of their production (excluding the costs of construction and modernization of renewable energy installations). The total amount allocated for this call is PLN 2 billion. The maximum intensity of co-financing in the form of grants is 100% of the eligible costs. The call is scheduled for December 2024. The call will be handled by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The call will be aimed at all enterprises.

Support will be granted to finance:

• construction of electricity storage facilities, with a capacity component of not less than 2 MW and capable of storing no less than 4 MWh of electricity, having EU CER and fire safety certification and approval (e.g., battery containers, inverter stations, transformers, installation of battery modules, supporting systems, such as detection systems, fire detection systems, air conditioning systems, DC/DC or DC/AC converters, or active and inactive protection mechanisms), along with tests and acceptance of storage facilities;
• construction of a grid connection and associated infrastructure;
• configuration and adaptation of a storage facility (BMS, EMS, mapping in monitoring systems, creating remote access to devices and/or data, certification and approval of the energy storage facility according to EU standards, etc.).

* The Applicant will not have to provide grid connection conditions at the application stage. It will be required, however, before the first payment is made.

The total amount allocated for this call is more than PLN 4 billion. The financing will be available in the form of grants covering up to 45% of the investment project’s eligible costs. The aid intensity can be increased by 20 percentage points for small enterprises and by 10 percentage points for medium-sized entities. The call is scheduled for Q4 2024. It will be handled by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The calls still open for applicants include: “Development of electric power infrastructure for the development of electric vehicles recharging stations”, “Cogeneration for Energy and Industry”, “Support for the use of storages and other devices for network stabilization” - more information can be found in the alert on the calls available in Q3 2024, as well as “RES – heat sources for district heating”, the details of which can be found in the alert on calls available in Q2 2024. In addition, there is an ongoing call for entrepreneurs with legal title to installations covered by the ETS, “Energy-intensive industry – RES”. The financing provided for the call has not been used up and the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management encourages entities to apply for funding.

Under the above-described calls, support is offered to a wide array of enterprises of various size. Due to high allocation of funds and substantial variety of support offered, the programs can prove attractive to KPMG clients in various industries. Importantly, the schedule for 2024 offers other calls promoting energy transition.

Entities interested in obtaining support should immediately start working on developing concepts for projects planned to be submitted as part of applications for funding.

KPMG experts from the Innovation, Grants & Incentives group posses vast experience in advising on the effective acquisition of financial support in the form of grants, incentives, and subsidies.

Our team will help you prepare the project, from the initial concept stage, through the preparation of the application for support, the evaluation stage, to the correct settlement of the incurred expenses.

We encourage you to contact us regarding the above calls, as well as other ventures (including projects related enterprise development or R&D activities).