SORAINEN ENERGY CARD 2012 RENEWABLE ENERGY & SUPPORT

Transcription

1 BALTIC LAW FIRM OF THE YEAR Awarded by: Financial Times & Mergermarket Interna onal Financial Law Review PLC Which lawyer? Interna onal Tax Review SORAINEN ENERGY CARD 2012 RENEWABLE ENERGY & SUPPORT Summary of renewable energy support schemes in the Bal c and Belarus electricity sector Effective 1 May 2012

2 Summary of renewable energy support schemes in ESTONIA Approx 90% of electricity produced in Estonia comes from local oil shale. Poten al for renewable energy in Estonia is strongest in wind power and bioenergy-based combined heat and power genera on, and also in small-scale hydro-power. The law defines renewable energy sources as water, wind, solar, wave, dal and geothermal energy sources, landfill gas, sewage treatment plant gas, biogases and biomass. The main renewable energy sources in Estonia are wind, biomass and biogas. In 2011, renewable energy genera on cons tuted 12.9% of Estonian electricity consump on, or 3.2% more than in The volume of generated renewable energy was 1160 GWh as of the end of 2011, having increased by 35% within a year. Estonia is predicted to reach the target 25% of overall electricity consump on from renewable energy sources by 2020 without significant surplus or deficit. A producer is en tled to support (feed-in premium) for electricity generated from a renewable energy source (except from biomass) or from biomass in an efficient combined heat and power (CHP) mode. To qualify for support, electricity must be generated by a genera ng installa on conforming to the requirements of the Electricity Market Act and the grid code and the producer must fulfil the relevant obliga ons under the Electricity Market Act. The cost of financing support is passed on to end consumers in propor on to their consump on of network services and the amount of electricity consumed through direct lines. Support is paid to the producer by the transmission system operator. An applica on for support must include informa on concerning installa ons used for produc on and other informa on established by the transmission system operator. In addi on to payment of renewable energy support, Estonia has previously granted investment aid to wind park projects. However, the deadline for applying for investment aid has already passed. The support rate for electricity produced from a renewable energy source (except biomass) and electricity produced from biomass in an efficient CHP mode is EUR /kWh. Dra legisla on has been prepared for reduc on of renewable energy support. This provides that support is not payable if the power exchange price for electricity or the CO 2 market price is higher than or equal to support rates set in the dra legisla on. However, for the me being it is unclear if this legisla on will be adopted. Limits on the maximum amount and dura on of availability of support depending on the type of renewable technology are as follows: - Payment of support for wind energy will terminate when in one calendar year support has been paid for more than 600 GWh, which is calculated for all wind energy producers cumula vely. - Support may be paid within 12 years from commencement of produc on. - Support may be paid un l 31 December 2012 for electricity produced from renewable resources with generating installations that started operating before 1 January Support is not paid for wind energy producers who previously received state investment aid. Summary of renewable energy support schemes in the Bal c and Belarus electricity sector

3 Summary of renewable energy support schemes in LATVIA In 2010, total electricity consump on in Latvia amounted to 7500 GWh with 48.5% of electricity generated from renewable energy resources (RES). Renewable energy structure of electricity consump on segments involves hydropower plants, wind power plants, biogas and biomass power plants, and cogenera on plants genera ng electricity from RES. According to 2010 data, electricity generated from RES in large hydro power plants amounted to 45.9%, in combined heat and power plants 0.8%, in small hydro power plants 1.0% and in wind power plants 0.7%. An addi onal 2036 GWh of electricity from RES should be produced to achieve 40% consump on of RES energy in In order to obtain the right to sell electricity within the scope of mandatory procurement, electricity producers using renewable energy sources par cipate in annual tenders organised by the Ministry of Economics. Eligibility criteria for tenders vary depending on the type of renewable energy source. According to the results of each tender, electricity produced from renewable energy sources is sold to AS (joint stock company) Latvenergo under an agreement with the electricity producer. Companies which produce electricity in biogas or biomass plant over 1 MW may obtain the right to receive a guaranteed price for their par cular power plant capacity for up to 15 years, if they meet certain technical criteria. The guaranteed price is paid monthly by AS Latvenergo to the electricity producer. This support mechanism cons tutes an alterna ve to the mandatory procurement scheme for this par cular type of electricity producer. Qualifica on of new market entrants has been suspended for sale of electricity within the framework of mandatory procurement and acquisi on of the right to receive guaranteed payment for installed capacity to 1 January Proposed amendments in regulatory acts provide an extension of this suspension to 1 January The cost of financing support is passed on to end consumers in propor on to their electricity consump on. A guaranteed electricity purchase price for a par cular procurement volume is calculated by the state owned public trader AS Latvenergo in accordance with the respec ve annual share in total electricity end consump on established by the government. The electricity purchase price under the mandatory procurement scheme is calculated in accordance with formulas provided in specific government regula ons. Other support channels available include financial support from eg the Environment Investment Fund, the Latvian Environmental Protec on Fund, as well as fiscal measures. Natural resources tax exemp on applies to use of water in hydroelectric power sta ons, as well as to carbon dioxide emissions for cogenera on power plants using biomass for energy produc on. Electricity produced from renewable energy sources is exempt from electricity tax. Excise duty exemp on applies to biogas used in electricity produc on, including cogenera on plants.

4 Summary of renewable energy support schemes in LITHUANIA Approx 90% of electricity produced in Lithuania is produced from natural gas. The poten al for renewable energy in Lithuania is strongest in wind power and bioenergybased combined heat and power genera on. The law defines renewable energy sources as water, wind, solar, wave, dal and geothermal energy sources, landfill gas, sewage treatment plant gas, biogases and biomass. The main renewable energy sources in Lithuania are wind and biomass. In 2011, renewable energy genera on cons tuted 12.6% of Lithuanian electricity consump on. It is predicted that Lithuania will reach the target 23% of overall electricity consump on from renewable energy sources by 2020 without significant surplus or deficit. A producer is en tled to support for electricity generated from (i) a renewable energy source, (ii) from biomass, (iii) from waste, or (iv) from wind, or (v) from solar energy, or (vi) from water. To qualify for support, electricity must be generated by a genera ng installa on conforming to the requirements described in the Procedure for Promo on of Genera on and Purchase of Electricity Generated from Renewable Energy Sources approved by the Lithuanian Government. The cost of financing support is passed on to end consumers in propor on to their consump on of network services and the amount of electricity consumed through direct lines. Support is paid to the producer by the transmission system operator. An applica on for support must include informa on concerning installa ons used for produc on and other informa on established by the transmission system operator. The decision on gran ng support is made by The Na onal Control Commission for Prices and Energy. Support rates for 2012: - EUR /kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source (except biomass) and electricity produced from biomass in efficient CHP mode; - EUR 0.008/kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source, namely water-power sta ons; - EUR 0.104/kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source, namely wind sta ons; - EUR 0.301/kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source, namely solar sta ons; - EUR 0.185/kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source, namely biogas; - EUR 0.145/kWh electricity produced from a renewable energy source, namely biomass. Limits on the maximum amount of support depending on the type of renewable technology and installed capacity are as follows: - Star ng from 1 January 2012, support rates are differen ated into 3 groups, depending on the type of energy source and installed capacity of the sta on. - Maximum support amounts are set depending on installed capacity; IC 1 <30, 30<IC<350, 350<IC<1000 and IC< Support may be paid within 12 years from commencement of produc on. 1 Installed capacity

5 Summary of renewable energy support schemes in BELARUS Currently, approx 6% of electricity produced in Belarus comes from renewable energy sources. The poten al for renewable energy in Belarus is strongest in hydro, wind power and bioenergy. The share of renewable energy sources is expected to increase to 25% by The Na onal Programme on Development of Local and Renewable Sources of Energy for does not establish par cular targets with regard to renewable energy but underlines the need to subs tute tradi onal energy sources with renewable ones. The law defines renewable energy sources as solar, wind and geothermal energy sources, natural movement of water flows, wood fuel and other types of biomass and biogas, as well as other sources of energy not considered as non-renewable sources. In February 2012, the State Cadastre of Renewable Energy Sources was created in Belarus. The State Cadastre contains and provides informa on on areas of possible and actual placement of plants for use of renewable energy sources with capacity of more than 200 kw, on producers of energy from renewable sources, etc. The State Cadastre is designed inter alia to a ract investment to renewable energy sources, to assess the energy poten al of Belarusian territory and to enhance the efficiency of renewable energy sources. Producers are granted a right of guaranteed sale to state energy supply organisa ons of all energy produced and a right of guaranteed connec on to the nearest point on the state grid. Connec on is at the expense of the state power supply organisa on. Producers are also en tled to support by selling electricity to the grid at feed-in tariffs. To receive support a producer has to provide a cer ficate confirming the origin of energy. The cer ficate is issued by the Belarus Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Protec on. Currently, equipment imported to Belarus for use of renewable energy sources is exempt from importa on VAT. Land plots occupied by equipment and plant using renewable energy source plus land plots provided for construc on (reconstruc on) of such equipment and plant are not subject to land tax. Addi onally, an investor may enter into an investment agreement with the Republic of Belarus and receive addi onal benefits under the terms of the agreement, including exemp on from customs du es. Producers are en tled to sell electricity to the grid at the tariffs established for business consumers with connected capacity up to 750 kilovar with applica on of the following coefficients: - within 10 years from start of opera on 1.3; and - over 10 years of opera on Electricity produced from solar energy is subject to increased feed-in tariffs: - within 10 years from start of opera on 3; and - over 10 years of opera on Taking into account the current tariff for business consumers 2, feed-in tariffs for electricity produced from renewable energy source are as follows: - within 10 years from start of operation approx EUR 0.135/kWh (solar energy EUR 0.311/kWh); and - over 10 years of opera on approx EUR 0.088/kWh. 2 The current tariff is BYR 1,192 and is calculated on the basis of the basic tariff approved by the Ministry of Economy from me to me (BYR 737 since September 2011). 89% of the basic tariff is indexed to change of the USD exchange rate (BYR 5,107 as of September 2011 vs BYR 8,000 as of 3 April 2012). Tax Summary Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Belarus

6 The SORAINEN Energy & U li es Prac ce is a significant feature of the firm s Compe on & Regulatory Team. The prac ce covers a full range of interna onal and domes c energy law and regulatory services. We assist clients in nego a ons involving complex agreements, regulatory issues and poli cal challenges. The team consists of highly qualified energy law experts supported by other SORAINEN prac ces in the areas of dispute resolu on, regulatory, compe on law, environmental law, and mergers and acquisi ons. With more than a dozen experienced and interna onally recognised lawyers from all SORAINEN offices, the firm has one of the largest energy & u li es prac ces in the Bal c States and Belarus. SORAINEN offers exper se in all key energy and u li es areas including: price and tariff approvals; electricity, gas and hea ng power plant construc on and modernisa on projects; price and tariff approvals; permits and licences; gas and oil extrac on; liquefied natural gas projects; supply and network agreements; energy dispute resolu on; nego a ons with regulators; compliance issues; protec on of investments; waste management projects; emissions trading; renewable energy. ESTONIA LATVIA LITHUANIA BELARUS Kaupo Lepasepp Partner Pärnu mnt Tallinn phone fax estonia@sorainen.com Ģirts Rūda Partner Kr. Valdemāra iela 21 LV-1010 Riga phone fax latvia@sorainen.com Paulius Koverovas Specialist counsel Jogailos 4 LT Vilnius phone fax lithuania@sorainen.com Maksim Salahub Partner ul Nemiga Minsk phone fax belarus@sorainen.com Please note that the SORAINEN Energy Card is compiled for general information only, free of obligation and free of legal responsibility and liability. It was prepared on the basis of information publicly available on 1 May The Energy Card does not cover laws or reflect all changes in legislation, nor are the explanations provided exhaustive. Therefore, we recommend that you contact your legal adviser for further information. ISO 9001 cer fied SORAINEN 2012 All rights reserved