SLOVAKIA’s Economy Ministry has provided over €618,000 in subsidies to households to purchase solar collectors and biomass-fuel boilers as part of a programme designed to increase the use of biomass and solar power, the ministry told the SITA newswire.
An expert commission has approved 603 applications thus far. As of late 2009, the ministry paid out €499,500 on 490 applications for biomass-fired boilers and solar collectors, while 113 applicants will receive approximately €118,600 in early 2010.
About €7.381 million remains in the programme’s budget for 2010.
Demand for subsidies is increasing and households show more interest in the solar collectors than in biomass-fuel boilers to use for their heating. The head of the communication department at the Slovak Innovation and Energy Agency, Katarína Antalová, said the agency had received 1,570 applications for subsidies to finance the purchase of biomass-fired boilers (1,335 applications) and solar collectors to date, SITA reported.
