Ref. Ares(2023)2989611 - 27/04/2023
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR ENERGY
Expression of Interest
for participation in the Union renewable energy financing mechanism
as a contributing Member State
as defined in Article 7(3) of the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU)
2020/1294 of 15 September 2020
This Expression of Interest focusses on contributing to the financing of
renewable energy projects under a grant award procedure in 2023.
Please fill in the details below:
Contact
Member State
Ministry and division within ministry
(or responsible body)
Name of contact person
Contact details (phone, email)
Introduction:
This document is prepared by the Commission services on the basis of Article 7(1) of
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294 of 15 September 2020. According to
it, every year the Commission shall call on Member States to express their interest in
participating as contributing Member State in the Union renewable energy financing
mechanism (referred to as ‘REFM’). Your authorities are therefore kindly asked to reply to the
questions outlined below, by 31 May 2023.
Participating as a contributing Member State means offering financial contributions to the
mechanism in return for receiving renewable target achievement statistics. Participating as a
host Member State means offering to host renewable energy installations financed through the
European Commission/Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
mechanism whose renewable target achievement statistics will be shared with the contributing
Member States. In case you are interested to participate (also) as a host Member State, please
reply also to the other questionnaire.
Basic characteristics of the Union renewable energy financing mechanism:
The aim of the mechanism is to provide support for new renewable energy projects in
the Union.
The renewable energy statistics generated by the projects financed by the mechanism
will be split between host and contributing Member States. This means that the
mechanism does not entail purchasing statistical transfers for certain individual years.
It is an instrument for Member States to cooperate on the financing of new renewable
energy projects, giving access to long-term renewable target achievement statistics.
By default, the renewable energy statistics will be split 20/80 – meaning 20% of the
statistics remain with the host Member States and 80% of the statistics are transferred
to the contributing Member States – unless Member States have deviating preferences.
Support to projects will most likely be paid in the form of investment support due to the
administrative, budgetary and legal framework of the REFM.
A host Member State determines the maximum capacity that can be built on its territory,
what technology and where the projects can be located.
Benefits of contributing to the financing of renewable energy projects under the mechanism
include the following:
Benefits to contributing MS
Transferred RES target statistics
Support cost savings (vs. natl. deployment)
Access cheap RES potentials across technologies and
participating Member States
Lower transaction costs (vs. CoopMechs)
Solution to comply with requirement of 2020 baseline
target
May be a solution for the requirement of opening
support schemes
Article 2 of the implementing regulation specifies two functions: the “gap filling function” and
the “enabling function”. The “gap filling function” has the aim of covering a gap in the
indicative Union trajectory. In this case the only award criterion applied in the procedure will
be the lowest price. The “enabling function” has the aim of supporting renewable energy
deployment across the Union irrespective of a gap to the indicative Union trajectory. In this
case, additional award criteria may be applied. Under both functions, the contributing Member
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States will receive the statistical benefits that correspond to the renewable energy produced by
the supported projects, in line with the rules of the implementing regulation.
Please note that the Commission will not make public any of the information provided by you
as part of the expression of interest, except where expressly authorised to do so, in line with
Article 7(4) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294. Furthermore, the information that
your Member State provides is in no manner binding or creating obligations on the Member
State, the Commission or any other actor, as the participation in the mechanism is on a
voluntary basis.
The information that is asked for in this document has the aim to enable the Commission to
reflect to the extent possible the preferences of the Member States and to set-up a design of the
call for proposals under the REFM that would attract sufficient interest on the sides of both
Member States and project developers. Therefore, we encourage you to provide comprehensive
replies to the questions below, reflecting your available data and information.
Questions 2 and 3 ask you to provide information on the minimum volume of renewable target
achievement statistics you would expect to receive per year and your corresponding maximum
overall financial contribution to the grant award procedure in 2022. The EC will use this
information to determine a maximum willingness to pay in terms of €/MWh or €/MW. It is
essential to set-up a design of the call for proposals. Questions 4 to 7 are optional. You may
answer these questions to express further preferences. However, indicating very restrictive
preferences may limit the potential for matching with host Member States’ preferences and
therefore limit the options to set-up a design of the call for proposals under the REFM.
Please note that the Commission’s task is to present call for proposal terms that correspond to
the common denominator of the preferences expressed by both contributing and hosting
Member States. Therefore, the call for proposal may not implement all preferences stated by
Member States.
As a next step and in line with the rules of the Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294
(Article 7(7) and (8)), the Commission will analyse carefully the information received through
the questionnaires and will inform the Member States of the draft design of the call for
proposals. Member States will have the possibility to comment on this draft, before the
Commission announces the final design.
The steps from this call for interest to the actual implementation of the auction are shown below.
3
The Commission sees the implementation as a transparent and iterative process. Therefore, we
remain fully available for guidance, questions and comments. Please do not hesitate to contact
the team at:
[email protected]
Please send the filled-in document to the following functional mailbox by 31 May 2023:
[email protected]
4
Questions:
1. What is the main objective of your contribution to the mechanism?
Explanation: The EC seeks to receive information on the objective that the contributing
Member State pursues to fulfill with its contribution. A contributing Member State may, for
example, aim to cover a gap in the indicative Union trajectory or may aim to support
renewable energy deployment across the Union irrespective of a gap to the indicative Union
trajectory. In any case, the Member State will receive the statistical benefits that correspond
to the renewable energy produced by the supported projects, in line with the rules of the
implementing regulation.
Specify the main objectives for participation. You may specify this information for several years
and in that case indicate a different objective for each year.
2. What is the minimum volume of renewable target achievement statistics you would
expect to receive per year in return for your financial contribution to the next grant
award procedure?
Explanation: The EC seeks to receive information on the total amount of renewable target
achievement statistics you want to receive through financial contributions to the REFM.
From this information, the EC can derive the volume of renewable energy projects that need
to be supported through the REFM.
For example, you may state that you seek a transfer of renewable target achievement
statistics of 500.000 MWh annually from in return for your contribution to the REFM (for
instance, to cover a gap). From this information and based on information about the
technologies potential host Member States are willing to offer and an assumed split of the
statistics between the host Member States and the contributing Member States (e.g. 20/80),
the EC can derive a corresponding auction volume.
Please indicate in MWh per year the amount of renewable target achievement statistics you expect
to receive each year in return for the financial contribution of your Member State. Please also
indicate the year in which you expect the renewable energy projects to be realized, i.e. when you
expect to start receiving target achievement statistics.
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3. What is your maximum overall financial contribution to the grant award procedure in
2022?
Explanation: The EC seeks to receive information on an indicative maximum budget
available as the financial contribution to the mechanism. Express values preferably as €. If
applicable, you can also express your contribution in your currency (if not €).
For example, you may state that you seek to limit the amount of your support to a onetime
payment of maximum of 100 million Euros. The EC will use this information as well as the
information on the minimum volume of renewable target achievement statistics you would
expect to receive per year (from question 2) to determine a maximum willingness to pay in
terms of €/MWh.
Alternatively, you may also indicate a maximum willingness to pay in €/MWh, for example
€12/MWh.
Please indicate your maximum intended financial contribution to the REFM in € (or, if applicable,
in your national currency) for the grant award procedure in year 2022. Alternatively, you may
indicate your maximum willingness to pay in €/MWh.
6
The following questions are optional. You may answer the following questions to express
further preferences. However, indicating very restrictive preferences may limit the
potential for matching with host Member States and therefore limit the options to set-up a
design of the call for proposals under the REFM.
4. What share of renewable target achievement statistics generated by the projects
financed do you request?
Explanation: Paragraph 3 of Article 27 of the implementing regulation on the REFM
specifies the standard distribution of the statistical benefits between contributing and host
Member States as follows: 20% to host Member States, 80% to contributing Member States.
You can also request to deviate from this standard approach on the basis of objective
criteria, listed in paragraph 4 of Article 27 of the implementing regulation. The possible
range of distribution of statistical benefits to the host Member States is from 0% to 50%.
Indicate here whether you request to deviate from the standard distribution (20% / 80%) by
answering yes or no.
☐Yes
☐No
If your previous answer was yes, please indicate here your requested distribution in % per
technology, where applicable. Please provide an objective justification for the envisaged RES
share.
5. Do you prefer a technology-specific or a multi-technology approach?
Explanation: The auction can be either technology-specific or for multiple technologies.
Multi-technology auctions aim at achieving a least-cost selection across technologies, while
a technology-specific auction aims at a least-cost deployment of the selected technology.
Please note that in the context of the REFM so-called upfront investment aid is likely to be
applied in the first rounds, due to financial regulations and implications for the handling of
budget. With upfront investment aid, technology-specific auctions are more likely to be
implemented, since comparability of bids in multi-technology auctions allocating investment
aid is challenging.
Please indicate, whether you would prefer a technology-specific or a multi-technology approach.
7
☐Technology-specific approach
☐Multi-technology approach
6. Which technologies and end-use sectors are you willing to support?
Explanation: The EC seeks to receive information on the technologies and end-use sectors
which you would accept to support in relation to your financial contribution. Member States
are encouraged to be as flexible as possible, as to take full advantage of the available
potential across the EU Member States.
Please indicate your preference by ticking the relevant boxes.
☐All technologies for electricity sector
Or specify individual technologies:
☐Ground mounted solar PV
☐Rooftop solar PV
☐Onshore wind energy
☐Offshore wind energy
☐Biomass
☐Biogas
☐Other (for example innovative technologies such as tidal wave or hydrogen)
End use sectors other than electricity (note that end-use-specific tenders beyond electricity
are unlikely to be implemented in the first auction rounds under the REFM).
☐Heating & cooling
☐Transport
☐Other (for example innovative technologies)
Technologies with cross-sectoral use
☐Biomass / Biogas
☐Solar CHP
☐Other (for example innovative technologies)
8
If you selected “other” above, please specify your technology preferences.
7. Should projects financed through the REFM fulfill any other specific criteria?
Explanation: Here the EC seeks to receive information on any other preferences, criteria or
restrictions you may have. This should be supported by an explanation. Such preferences
may include environmental criteria to be fulfilled by the new RES installations.
Note that the implementation of specific additional criteria requested by contributing
Member States may be challenging. This is due to two reasons. First, local legal frameworks
of the host Member States continue to apply for RES installations under the REFM. Second,
the grant award procedure (the auction) needs to be applicable to multiple Member States,
which may be challenging when various additional criteria have to be implemented.
Indicate here whether you intend to attach additional criteria, preferences or restrictions to your
financial contribution by answering yes or no.
☐Yes
☐No
If your previous answer was yes, please specify which additional criteria, preferences or restrictions
you intend to attach to your financial contribution. Please provide a short and objective
justification.
9
Ref. Ares(2023)2989611 - 27/04/2023
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
DIRECTORATE-GENERAL FOR ENERGY
Expression of Interest
for participation in the Union renewable energy financing mechanism
as a host Member State
as defined in Article 7(2) of the Commission Implementing Regulation (EU)
2020/1294 of 15 September 2020
This Expression of Interest focusses on hosting renewable energy projects
financed under a grant award procedure in 2023.
Please fill in the details below:
Contact
Member State
Ministry and division within ministry
(or responsible body)
Name of contact person
Contact details (phone, email)
Introduction:
This document is prepared by the Commission services on the basis of Article 7(1) of
Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294 of 15 September 2020. According to
it, every year the Commission shall call on Member States to express their interest in
participating as host Member State in the Union renewable energy financing mechanism
(referred to as ‘REFM’). Your authorities are therefore kindly asked to reply to the questions
outlined below, by 31 May 2023.
Participating as a host Member State means offering to host renewable energy installations
financed through the mechanism whose renewable target achievement statistics will be shared
Commission européenne/Europese Commissie, 1049 Bruxelles/Brussel, BELGIQUE/BELGIË - Tel. +32 22991111
with the contributing Member States. Participating as a contributing Member State means
offering financial contributions to the mechanism in return for receiving renewable target
achievement statistics. In case you are interested to participate (also) as a contributing Member
State, please reply also to the other questionnaire.
Basic characteristics of the Union renewable energy financing mechanism:
The aim of the mechanism is to provide support for new renewable energy projects in
the Union.
The renewable energy statistics generated by the projects financed by the mechanism
will be split between host and contributing Member States. This means that the
mechanism does not entail purchasing statistical transfers for certain individual years.
It is an instrument for Member States to cooperate on the financing of new renewable
energy projects, giving access to long-term renewable target achievement statistics.
By default, the renewable energy statistics will be split 20/80 – meaning 20% of the
statistics remain with the host Member States and 80% of the statistics are transferred
to the contributing Member States – unless Member States have deviating preferences.
Support to projects will most likely be paid in the form of investment support due to the
administrative, budgetary and legal framework of the REFM.
A host Member State determines the maximum capacity that can be built on its territory,
what technology and where the projects can be located.
Benefits of hosting renewable energy projects under the mechanism include the following:
Benefits to hosting MS
Local investments and job creation
Greenhouse gas reductions
Reduced import dependency
Modernization of national energy system
Improved air quality & environmental security
These benefits come free of support costs
Please note that the Commission will not make public any of the information provided by you
as part of the expression of interest, except where expressly authorised to do so, in line with
Article 7(4) of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294. Furthermore, the information that
your Member State provides is in no manner binding or creating obligations on the Member
State, the Commission or any other actor, as the participation in the mechanism is on a
voluntary basis.
The information that is asked for in this document has the aim to enable the Commission to
reflect to the extent possible the preferences of the Member States and to set-up a design of the
call for proposals under the REFM that would attract sufficient interest on the sides of both
2
Member States and project developers. Therefore, we encourage you to provide comprehensive
replies to the questions below, reflecting your available data and information.
Please note that the Commission’s task is to present call for proposal terms that correspond to
the common denominator of the preferences expressed by both hosting and contributing
Member States. Therefore, the call for proposal may not implement all preferences stated by
Member States. In addition, if the host Member States express too specific preferences or apply
derogations from their national regulatory regime this may increase the transaction costs of the
tenders in general and project promoters in particular and may even hamper the competition
between the project developers in the call for proposals.
As a next step and in line with the rules of the Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1294
(Article 7(7) and (8)), the Commission will analyse carefully the information received through
the questionnaires and will inform the Member States of the draft design of the call for
proposals. Member States will have the possibility to comment on this draft, before the
Commission announces the final design.
The steps from this call for interest to the actual implementation of the auction are shown below.
The Commission sees the implementation as a transparent and iterative process. Therefore, we
remain fully available for guidance, questions and comments. Please do not hesitate to contact
the team at:
[email protected]
Please send the filled in document to the following functional mailbox by 31 May 2023.
[email protected]
3
Questions:
1. What is the total capacity of projects supported by the mechanism you are willing to host
on your territory?
Explanation: With this item, the EC intends to identify how much newly installed RES capacity
(RES-E, RES-T and/or RES-H) can be hosted in your Member State for the Union renewable
energy financing mechanism (REFM). The information needs to be known for each technology
you intend to host and for the newly installed capacity per year.
For example, you may decide to express your interest to allow on your territory projects
financed by the REFM with a total capacity of 300 MW of newly installed ground mounted PV
installations for year 2022.
Specify here the maximum of total added RES capacity per RES technology in MW (and MW per
year, if applicable) that you are willing to host under the REFM.
2. What is the minimum and maximum size of projects you are willing to host on your
territory?
Explanation: Under this item please indicate if you would define a minimum and / or the
maximum size for each RES plant newly installed on your territory under the REFM, for
instance, to reduce transaction costs, to ease grid integration or to limit environmental
impacts. You can define this for each technology. Please also indicate whether the defined
(minimum and / or maximum) size restrictions reflect your existing national rules for new RES
installations or whether they are defined specifically for the REFM. Note that size limitations
for RES plants typically reduce their cost effectiveness.
For example, you may express limitations such as 50 MW maximum size per installation for
ground mounted PV and 100 MW maximum size per installation for wind onshore installations.
Specify here the minimum and / or maximum project size per technology (or across technologies)
in MW. Please indicate whether the defined size restrictions reflect national rules or whether they
are specifically designed for the REFM.
3. Which site provisions (i.e. the regulatory regime defining which sites are eligible for the
REFM) shall apply to projects in your territory?
Explanation: Generally, national provisions – including provisions on site selection – apply to
the projects hosted by the Member State also in the REFM, unless specified otherwise. This
4
item serves to indicate whether your existing national site provisions apply or if you plan to
deviate from existing provisions.. Please note that any site provisions restricting the
participation in the REFM will reduce its cost-effectiveness.
For example, you may state here that your existing provisions regarding site selection apply
and make a reference to the main relevant law / regulation. You may also indicate, for instance,
that for the REFM specifically conversion areas are eligible and installations on agricultural
land are not eligible.
Indicate here the generally existing national site provisions in a high-level manner. See below in
case you want to provide specific information for pre-selected sites.
Indicate here specific deviations from the existing national site provisions or otherwise relevant
information, for example with regards to 1) specifically selected types of sites for the REFM, 2)
specific sites selected for the REFM and / or 3) additional deviations from national site provisions.
4. What share of renewable target achievement statistics generated by the projects in your
territory do you request?
Explanation: Paragraph 3 of Article 27 of the implementing regulation on the REFM specifies
a standard distribution of the statistical benefits between contributing and host Member States
as follows: 20% to host Member States, 80% to contributing Member States, while the
contributing Member States pay the full support costs. Member States can request to deviate
from this standard approach on the basis of objective criteria, listed in paragraph 4 of Article
27 of the implementing regulation. The possible range of distribution of statistical benefits to
the host Member States is from 0% to 50%.
5
For example, you may want to ask for a share of 25% for ground mounted PV in case your
electricity system requires specific integration efforts (and related costs) to include additional
PV capacities.
Indicate here whether you request to deviate from the standard distribution (20% / 80%) by
answering yes or no.
☐Yes
☐No
If your previous answer was yes, please indicate here your requested distribution in % per
technology, where applicable. Please provide an objective justification for the envisaged RES
share. This may include reference to RES integration costs, the use of RES potential or any other
impact factor you deem relevant. Provide additional information in a separate file / document if
necessary.
6
5. Which regulatory regime shall apply to projects on your territory?
Explanation: Generally, the national regulatory regime of the host Member State applies also
to all installations built under the REFM in the respective host Member State. This concerns,
inter alia, local planning and permitting procedures, the grid connection regime and the
taxation regime. You may opt to deviate from your local regulatory regime for installations
under the REFM, for instance with a view to the grid connection regime. In general terms, we
suggest maintaining your local regulatory regime as this reduces transaction costs for project
developers and for you as a host Member State.
Do you intend to fully apply your national regulatory regime?
☐Yes
☐No
If your answer to the previous question was no, please indicate here to which extent and how
exactly you seek to deviate from your local regulatory regime for installations under the REFM.
Provide additional information in a separate file / document if necessary.
7
6. Should projects on your territory fulfill any other specific criteria?
Explanation: Here the EC seeks to receive information on any other preferences or restrictions
you may have for installations under the REFM, beyond those identified in item 5. Such
additional preferences may include environmental criteria to be fulfilled by the new RES
installations, carbon footprint considerations, considerations regarding the impact on
biodiversity, additional sustainability criteria for biomass, etc. This should be supported by an
explanation.
Specify whether you have any additional preferences regarding applicable criteria, beyond those
identified in item 5. If so, which other criteria apply. Please provide a short and objective
justification.
8
Kristen Michal Meie: 28.04.2023
Minister No 10.1-13/405-1
Kiri
Austatud härra minister
Edastame volinik Kadri Simsoni poolt Eesti esindusse, 26.04.2023, saadetud kirja.
(Renewable Energy Financing Mechanism)
Lugupidamisega
Aivo Orav
alaline esindaja
Lisad: huvi avaldamise vormid (2)
Raili Lillemets
+32 222 7357
[email protected]
Rue Guimard 11/13 1040 Brüssel Tel: +32 2 227 39 10
[email protected] www.eu.mfa.ee/et
Ref. Ares(2023)2989611 - 27/04/2023
KADRI SIMSON Rue de la Loi, 200
B-1049 Brussels
MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Tel. +32-2 295 05 20
ENERGY
[email protected]
Brussels, 26 April 2023
ARES(2023)3166167
Mr Kristen Michal
Minister of Climate
Estonia
Dear Minister,
The EU Renewable Energy Financing Mechanism (‘the Mechanism’) aims to support Member States
in achieving targets of the renewable energy share in the final energy consumption by 2030
in a cooperative and cost-effective manner. The mechanism serves as a platform that links
‘contributing’ Member States that provide financing for projects with ‘host’ Member States that offer
their territory to install renewable energy infrastructure facilities.
On 27 February 2023 Luxembourg and Finland have confirmed their binding commitments to
participate in the Mechanism as a contributing and a host country. On that basis we have launched
the first cross-border tender for renewable energy projects on 18 April 2023, which opens a new
stage of cooperation between EU countries in the area of renewables. It was designed in close
cooperation with the Member States which expressed their interest in participating in the Mechanism,
in order to meet their preferences and conditions. It provides investment opportunities for
development of solar PV projects located in Finland, funded by the financial support of the
contributing country – Luxembourg.
Participation in the Mechanism as a contributing country provides an opportunity to receive statistical
benefits for 15 years from the renewable energy projects in a cost effective way. Those benefits
count towards Member States’ contributions to the Union’s renewable target and towards their
baseline.
The benefits for host countries include increased investments in renewable energy generation,
modernisation of the energy system and reduced import dependency, without a burden to the national
1/2
budget. In addition to those benefits, host countries will receive as well a share of the renewable
energy statistics.
In view of the preparation of the second tender under the mechanism, planned to be opened by
the end of 2023, I am inviting you to express your interest to participate in the mechanism by filling
in the template(s) attached to this letter by 31 May 2023. The expression of interest is not binding.
Your interest and participation will enhance the cross-border cooperation in the development of
renewable energy projects across the Union.
Yours sincerely,
Kadri SIMSON
Enclosure: Templates for a reply to the call for expression of interest
Electronically signed on 26/04/2023 20:18 (UTC+02) in accordance with Article 11 of Commission Decision (EU) 2021/2121