The Ministry of Climate and Energy has prepared amendments to the Cabinet of Ministers' rules that change the payment procedure from wind power plants for the development of local communities. The project is currently under review. The reason for the changes is a gap in the existing regulation. Today, the norms can be interpreted such that if a wind farm starts operating in the middle of the year, the first mandatory payment to the local community is made only for the next full calendar year. The ministry considers this procedure unfair and proposes to change it. If the initiative is approved, owners of wind power plants will have to transfer funds for the year in which the facility began operating. The amount of the payment will be calculated proportionally to the number of full months of operation until the end of the calendar year. In other words, if the wind farm is commissioned not in January, the company will not pay for the entire year at once, but it will also not be able to defer payments until the next year. Currently, the rules provide for an annual payment of 2500 euros for each, including partial, megawatt of installed capacity of the wind power plant. However, the mechanism for calculating the amount for the first incomplete year of operation has not yet been specified. The proposed amendments are intended to eliminate this uncertainty. The ministry emphasizes that producers will pay only for the period when the power plant has actually been operating, and local communities will be able to receive funds for their development more quickly. For residents of areas where wind farms are being built, this means that funding for local projects can begin earlier, without waiting for the next calendar year. After the review process is completed, the draft amendments will undergo further consideration by the government. If the changes are approved, the new procedure will apply to new cases of commissioning wind power plants.
