Feed-in premium for renewable energy sources other than photovoltaic

A level of 5.8 billion Euros per year has been set in aggregate for all incentives to be paid under the regime of incentives for renewable energies excluding solar PV. The new incentive starts to be granted from the 1st of January, 2013. Plants that were already permitted before the date of entry into force of the decree and that will enter into operation by 30 April 2013 may, however, decide to be admitted to the green certificates regime (anyway they may be converted into the new regime in the future).

The application for the granting of the incentives is regulated depending upon the capacity of the plant and different systems are provided for:

• (i) a competitive tender with the winning bid being the offer for the lowest possible tariff level,
• (ii) for mid-sized plants a system of tariff booking by means of a non-directly competitive pre-registration process, and
• (iii) for the smallest ones of the plants a system by way of a direct application upon commissioning.

Refitting of existing plants are exempt from tendering. In order to access the tariffs following categories of plants shall go through competitive tenders:

• (i) new plants, fully re-built ones, and restarted plants with capacities above the threshold triggering the tender,
• (ii) hybrid plants with capacities above the threshold triggering the tender, and
• (iii) repowered plants for which the capacity gap exceeds the threshold triggering the tender. 

The threshold triggering the tender is equal to 5 MW, except for hydro for which it is 10 MW and geothermal for which it is 20 MW. The tendered capacities are those indicated in Annex 1.

The following categories of plants shall go through the booking by means of preregistration:

• (i) new plants, fully re-built ones, and restarted plants with capacities not exceeding the threshold triggering the tender,
• (ii) hybrid plants with capacities not exceeding the threshold triggering the tender,
• (iii) partially or totally refitted plants (within certain limits set forth under the FER decree), and
• (iv) repowered plants for which the capacity gap does not exceed the threshold triggering the tender.

Between the communication of the registration and the entry into operation the maximum time gap shall be

• (i) 16 months for onshore wind,
• (ii) 22 months for offshore wind,
• (iii) 28 months for hydro,
• (iv) 28 months for geothermal,
• (v) from 22 to 28 months for biomasses and biogas,
• (vi) 16 months for sustainable biofuels,
• (vii) 36 months for tides and waves.

A 12 months delay is allowed before losing the registration, but a 0.5% penalty for each month of delay applies on the applicable tariff. After losing the admission, a new successful application leads in any case to a tariff reduced by 15% on the applicable level. The following plants can access the tariffs directly upon entry into operation:

• (i) wind and oceanic streams with capacity not exceeding 60 kW,
• (ii) hydro streams with capacity not exceeding 50 kW,
• (iii) hydro streams with capacity not exceeding 250 kW, where built on existing channels and pipes without increase of the flux, that use returned waters or waste water, that use the minimal flow of dams excluding the climb-up volumes,
• (iv) biomasses streams with capacity not exceeding 200 kW,
• (v) biogas streams with capacity not exceeding 100 kW,
• (vi) repowered plants that fall within the above categories,
• (vii) re-built plants that fall within the above categories,
• (viii) plants subject to public tenders called by public entities that plants that fall within the above categories,
• (ix) plants for the conversion of the sugar industry, and
• (x) geothermal with medium and high enthalpy with re-injection up to 5 MW.

Existing plants getting green certificates will be paid with the new tariffs: they will receive a tariff of 78% of the target regulated price of green certificates.

For plants with capacity up to 1 MW the incentive is a feed-in tariff (it is paid on the electricity sold to GSE), but the owner of the plant can request the regime of the bigger plants. For plants with capacity exceeding 1 MW the incentive is in the form of a feed-in premium (it is paid on the electricity generated which is not to GSE). The decree provides for specific rules for the quantification of the tariff for rebuilt, reactivated, refitted and repowered plants.

There is a number of specific bans to be granted with the tariff of the decree and other incentive systems currently implemented.

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