Greece’s removal from the “Apollon” program of the Recovery and Resilience Fund, due to delays in meeting its completion deadline (June 2026), has led to the loss of €100 million in EU funding intended to tackle energy poverty, according to Kathimerini.
The program aimed, amid rising electricity costs, to support vulnerable households, municipalities, and other entities through the creation of regional energy communities.
These communities would have provided cheaper electricity generated from renewable energy sources (RES), covering all or part of their energy needs.
According to the Ministry of Energy, the beneficiaries would have included 127,500 households, 13 regions, 332 municipalities, and more than 10,000 local services and organizations.
Citizens, small and medium-sized enterprises, and local government bodies can participate in an energy community, which allows them to engage in and benefit from activities such as energy production, distribution, supply, self-consumption, energy saving, e-mobility, and storage.
Local government representatives note that the failure to implement the program deprives municipalities and citizens of crucial European funding at a time when the energy crisis is hitting institutions, public services, and households.
Participants in existing energy communities also describe the development as a “missed opportunity,” since EU funds are the only viable source of financing for such projects.
Πηγή: Καθημερινή
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