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Earlier today, Parliament adopted at second reading the amendments to the Renewable Energy Sources Act, submitted by the Council of Ministers on 13 April.
The amendments provide for easing of the grid connection procedures for producers of electricity from renewable energy sources with a total installed capacity of up to 1 megawatt by reducing the time limits for carrying out a study and issuing an opinion on the conditions and method of connection. It is foreseen that the period of the grid connection procedures from the submission of the request to the conclusion of the grid connection contract will be six months.
The Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) determines preferential prices for the purchase of electricity from renewable energy sources (RES), produced by energy sites with a total installed capacity of up to 30 kW, which are planned to be built on roof and facade structures of buildings connected to the electricity distribution network and on real estate in urban areas, the deputies wrote. So far, the EWRC has set preferential prices for the purchase of electricity from renewable energy sources produced by energy sites with a total installed capacity of less than 500 kW.
Implied consent is also introduced for the issuance of a building permit for the installation of installations for the production of electricity and heat from solar energy for self-consumption with a total installed capacity of 20 to 50 kW in buildings in urban areas, including on roofs and facade structures and adjacent land.
With the amendments to the Renewable Energy Act, MPs also amended other laws. One of them is the Energy Act, in which amendments related to premiums for renewable electricity producers were adopted. Since the entry into force of this law, contracts concluded for compensation with premiumс are deemed to be amended, with the premium being paid under different conditions.
The amendments also foresee that the final customer can become a consumer of its own electricity from renewable sources. It will be able to produce, store, consume and sell the surplus energy produced. It also creates the possibility for final customers, including households, to participate in a renewable energy community, which will also be able to sell surplus energy.
The amendments to the Renewable Energy Sources Act will be promulgated in the Official Gazette, after which they will enter into force.
Source: BTA
