The Sponsorship Plan for the Replacement of Energy-Efficient Electrical Appliances is announced today, which is addressed to vulnerable households, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry and the RES and FDI Fund.
As mentioned, citizens who belong to the group of vulnerable electricity consumers and want to replace electrical appliances provided by the Plan, with new high energy efficiency, can proceed from today to apply for pre-approval.
It is added that the sponsorships range from € 300 to € 600, depending on the device. A total of € 5 million will be allocated. Eligible appliances are refrigerators / freezers, washing machines and air conditioners. Beneficiaries can replace up to five appliances and, in particular, up to three air conditioners, a washing machine and a refrigerator.
It is expected that the Plan, which will remain in force until 20/12/2022 or until the available budget is exhausted, will cover about 5.000 applications and will significantly help reduce the electricity bill of the households that will benefit. It is estimated that replacing appliances with modern, high-energy class, contribute to energy savings that can exceed 50%.
As mentioned, the Plan is part of the series of compensatory measures announced by the Government in recent months to curb the increase in the price of electricity, including the reduction of VAT on electricity bills to 5% for six months for vulnerable households, the reduction VAT at 9% on electricity for three months for all other households and a 10% reduction in electricity tariffs for all consumers for the months November - December 2021 and January - February 2022.
According to the Minister of Energy Natasa Pileidou "and this measure strengthens the protection of our vulnerable citizens".
"Replacing electrical appliances with new, higher-energy ones," he explained, "along with building energy upgrades and using RES, are important tools for both reducing electricity costs in the long run and moving to a green economy."
In short, vulnerable electricity consumers include: Beneficiaries of Minimum Guaranteed Income, recipients of public assistance from Social Welfare Services, recipients of severe disability allowance, recipients of care allowance for the disabled, quadriplegics, quadriplegics and quadriplegics receive an allowance, provided that they have reached the age of 70 and do not live with another person who has not reached the age of 70, and a large or five-member family receiving a child allowance for three dependent children and above and has an annual gross family income up to € 51.258. The income criterion increases gradually by € 5.126, for each additional child over four.
The four steps that beneficiaries must follow to participate in the project are: Online submission of a pre-approval application on the RES and FDI website (https://resecfund.org.cy). The request is submitted by the vulnerable consumers of electricity themselves, as they are defined in the Decree K.D.P. 289/2015, purchase and installation of appliances (invoice in the name of the vulnerable consumer and indication of model of electrical appliance), electronic submission of a sponsorship application with attachment of an invoice and evaluation and payment of sponsorship.
Old appliances to be replaced must be delivered to the supplier for recycling purposes and certified.
The basic provisions of the plan are analyzed below:
-For air conditioners with a capacity of up to 3,99 kW (13.650 BTU / hr) in cooling, sponsorship of € 300 per unit.
-For air conditioners with a capacity of over 4 kW (13.650 BTU / hr) and up to 12 kW (40.945 BTU / hr) in cooling, sponsorship of € 500 per unit.
-For washing machines with a capacity of up to 8,9 Kg, sponsorship of € 300 per unit.
-For washing machines with a capacity of more than 9 Kg, sponsorship of € 400 per unit.
-For refrigerators / freezers of mixed capacity up to 449 lt, sponsorship € 400 per unit.
-For refrigerators / freezers of mixed capacity over 450 lt, sponsorship € 600 per unit.
(KYPE / MAN / HF)