The terms and conditions
Energy-vulnerable households can submit applications to be included in the second cycle of the “Excoionamo 2023” program from the day after tomorrow, Wednesday, February 7.
The Minister of Environment and Energy, Thodoros Skylakakis, and the Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance, Nikos Papathanasis, signed the Announcement Decision of the program, which opens for applications from 7.2.2024 to 29.3.2024, with a budget of 110 million euros , which are directed, exclusively, to energy-vulnerable households.
In particular, with regard to the terms and conditions of participation in the second cycle, potential beneficiaries are natural persons who have a right in rem (full ownership, usufruct, small ownership) to an eligible residence, i.e. a single-family house or apartment that exists legally, is used as a main residence, which has not been deemed to be demolished and has been classified based on the First Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) in a category lower than or equal to C.
For each potential beneficiary, the individual income must not exceed 5,000 euros and the family income must not exceed 10,000 euros. The maximum subsidy rate is 75% in the case of owner-occupation by the applicant and 65% in the case of free concession to another person or rental, respectively.
In the framework of the program, interventions related to the following five basic categories of expenses are eligible:
– Replacement of frames
– Installing/upgrading thermal insulation
– Heating/cooling system upgrade
– Domestic hot water system using Renewable Energy Sources (RES)
– Installation of a smart management system (smart home)
It is worth pointing out that VAT is an eligible expense for the program and is declared separately in the documents. If suppliers are subject to a reduced VAT regime or are exempt from the obligation to submit a declaration and pay tax, the applicable VAT rate must be declared.
The private participation for the implementation of the interventions can be covered by the beneficiaries of the program either with equity or with a loan agreement (for the amount they choose or the amount that will be approved by the financial organization) or with a combination of these.
In case of entering into a loan agreement, it is possible to guarantee the program to secure the loan to the financial institutions. The guarantee covers the loan amount at 100% for owner-occupancy cases and at 80% for rental/free concession cases, taking into account state aid rules.
The interest rate of the loan agreement for the needs of the program is fixed and subsidized, at a rate of 100%.
The applications
Funding applications are submitted only electronically and compulsorily through the information system of the program’s official website. When submitting the application, it is not necessary to present a physical folder with supporting documents. The necessary supporting documents are attached by the candidate electronically.
For each eligible natural person (for each TIN applicant) and for each eligible residence, it is possible to submit only one application. A residence with an active application in one of the Energy Upgrade Programs, “Home Saving II”, “Save-Autonomous”, “Save 2021” and “Save-Renovate for young people” does not have the right to submit to the second cycle. An exception is the case of a participating apartment of a “type B” apartment building application of the “Save – Autonomy” Program, for which an application may be submitted as an apartment.
A natural person who has submitted an application in the first cycle of the program, does not have the right to submit in the second cycle.
A residence for which an application has been submitted in the first cycle of the program, it is not allowed to submit an application in the second cycle.
For the submission and monitoring of the project, the interested party must use a Technical Consultant, a natural person, provided that he is an engineer, registered in the Register of Members or in the Book of Technical Names of the Technical Chamber of Greece (TEE), whose cost is covered directly from the program.
After the affiliation decision, the beneficiary is given the opportunity to use the grant advance.
“Save 2023”
“Save 2023” is subsidized by the Recovery and Resilience Fund. The program aims to improve the energy class of households, by saving more than 30% of primary energy for each beneficiary/residential building, through energy upgrading by at least three energy classes.
It is noted that the costs of the interventions implemented within the framework of the program or part thereof must not have received support from another Fund or financial instrument or from another European or national program, e.g. from actions to replace heating systems with natural gas systems, “Recycle – Change Device” program, etc. In the event that double funding of an intervention is found, the specific expenditure is deemed ineligible.
In the meantime, the initial ranking tables for the applicants from the first cycle of “Excoionamo 2023” are expected to be announced soon, which will include, as eligible in principle, the total of 31,549 submitted applications, with a total budget of 422.1 million euros.
The Minister of Environment and Energy, Thodoros Skylakakis, said: “The second cycle of “Excoionamo 2023″, which opens for submission of applications within the next few days, concerns, exclusively, the support of energy-vulnerable households. Its budget amounts to 110 million euros (reinforced compared to the original programming), an amount made available through the Recovery and Resilience Fund. Within the framework of the program, increased aid rates are foreseen for the beneficiaries, with the aim of implementing interventions that will upgrade their homes in terms of energy efficiency, while improving their daily life”.
The Deputy Minister of Environment and Energy, Alexandra Sdoukou, emphasized: “We are activating, from February 7, the submission of applications to the “Save 2023” program, exclusively for vulnerable households. We recently included, in principle, 31,549 homes in the first cycle of the program, while in total, with the completion of the “Excoionamo” programs, energy upgrade interventions will have been completed in almost 200,000 homes across the country, achieving significant energy savings for households. By supporting our vulnerable fellow citizens with 110 million euros, we are helping them upgrade their homes and reduce energy costs.”
