"Recycle – Change Water Heaters": The start of the program is postponed to April.

The time is approaching for the subsidized program for replacing electric water heaters with solar water heaters, as the Ministry of Environment and Energy is expected to publish the guide for the "Recycle - Change Water Heaters" program in March. Applications for vouchers are set to open in the upcoming period. Subsidy Amount: The program is expected to subsidize approximately 150,000 households, marking the first round of grant allocations. According to available information, the funding for the initiative is set at 100 million euros, financed by the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) for the period 2014-2021. The subsidy will cover up to 60% of the cost of acquiring a solar water heater. Recycling Requirement: A prerequisite for participation is the recycling of the electric water heater, which the seller, the establishment from which the program participant will purchase the solar water heater, will undertake through its dismantling from the residence. Types of Solar Water Heaters: According to the provided information, the selection of solar water heaters will be limited to "selective types" that have certification according to the "Solar Keymark" system. This certification is granted to manufacturers by an official and recognized body, supported by the Federation of European Solar Thermal Industry (ESTIF). Using Vouchers: The subsidy, as per the information, will be income-dependent and provided in the form of vouchers. The "Recycle - Change Water Heaters" program will operate based on the standards set by the "Recycle - Change Appliance" program. Below, you will find the relevant link. https://allazothermosifona.gov.gr/ At the address "allazothermosifona.gov.gr," households wishing to replace their electric water heaters with solar ones and recycle the old ones will submit their applications. A prerequisite for their entry will be unlocking the platform using their taxisnet code. Criteria: Proposals from interested parties will be evaluated based on economic and social criteria. Priority, according to information, will be given to low-income households, individuals with special needs, single-parent families, and large families. Innovations in the program also include the fact that there will be a separate budget for vulnerable households. Therefore, the 60% subsidy can be claimed by household consumers of another income category. ClimaSolution takes care of recycling your electric water heater, offering you a wide range of solar water heaters to take advantage of the government subsidy. Below, you will find attached the detailed guide regarding the program. PROGRAM GUIDE "CHANGE WATER HEATER" It is estimated that 120,000 beneficiaries will benefit from the subsidy for the purchase of a solar water heater. Interested parties can submit their application using taxisnet codes. Two vouchers for purchase and installation will be provided with the approved application for solar water heater subsidy. Until the last moment, it was unknown whether beneficiaries would receive a coupon covering both services. However, with the publication of the Government Gazette for the "Change Water Heater" program, this issue was clarified. Thus, the approved beneficiary receives two vouchers: One for the purchase subsidy of the product. The other for the subsidy of additional services. Title: Income Criteria and Amount of Support The program guide provides subsidies based on three income brackets and the capacity of the water heater to be replaced. For the first category with income up to €5,000, the subsidy is 60%, with a maximum amount of €904.84 for water heaters over 186 liters, €771.77 for water heaters of 136-185 liters, and €612.10 for water heaters of 110-135 liters. For the second category, with income from €5,000 to €10,000, the subsidy is 55%, with amounts of €829.84 for water heaters over 186 liters, €707.26 for water heaters of 136-185 liters, and €561.29 for water heaters of 110-135 liters. In the third category, with income over €10,000 and up to €30,000, the subsidy is 50%, with a maximum amount of €754.03 for water heaters over 186 liters, €634.55 for water heaters of 136-185 liters, and €510.48 for water heaters of 110-135 liters. 30% of the total public expenditure is allocated to the first category of low-income households, and distribution is made by geographic region to ensure an equal success rate for applicants in each region. Other criteria, such as disabled members, single-parent families, and dependent members, are also considered in the evaluation of applications. In case of equal scores on all criteria, the submission time of the application is taken into account. Step-by-step Application Process 1. Identification: Individuals applying for the program submit funding applications through the Unified Digital Portal of Public Administration (gov.gr). Mandatory identification of the applicant using personal codes or taxisnet. 2. Application: After identification, the applicant submits an application, declaring, among other things, the 11-digit electricity supply number of the residence where the electric water heater to be replaced is installed. 3. Processing of Applications: The processing of the funding application is based on the declared and submitted information by the applicant, electronic cross-references with third-party services and public registries, confirming eligibility criteria, and calculating selection/ranking criteria for the specific application. Income Categories: The income categories are evaluated based on the primary data maintained in the aforementioned registries and databases. Applicants are responsible for the accuracy and correctness of this information before submitting the funding application. Evaluation of Funding Applications: Eligible household consumers with installed electric water heaters are selected through automated checks. There is no possibility to correct submitted applications. Successful Applications - Next Steps: Successfully submitted applications are ranked based on their overall score, derived from individual scores of evaluation criteria. After the deadline for application submission, Provisional Lists are prepared for successfully submitted and scored applications. Based on the submitted application data, the amounts of public expenditure corresponding to each region are calculated for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd income categories. Applications are then ranked in 26 distinct lists as follows: Applications for the 1st income category are ranked in 13 separate lists – one per region, starting from the one with the highest score and descending in order. Applications for the 2nd and 3rd income categories are combined and ranked in 13 separate lists – one per region, following the same descending order. Distribution of Expenditure per Region For each distinct list, applications are selected either until the exhaustion of the available public spending of the Program for the specific Region or until the coverage of the total number of applications, provided that the corresponding public expenditure is sufficient. These applications are included in the table of eligible applications for funding from the specific list. In the event that all applications of the 1st income category are included in the table of eligible applications without covering the total public expenditure, the surplus amount is used to subsidize additional applications of the 2nd and 3rd income categories. Conversely, if all applications of the 2nd and 3rd income categories are included in the table of eligible applications without covering the total public expenditure, the surplus amount is used to subsidize additional applications of the 1st income category. If the available public expenditure of either the 1st or the 2nd & 3rd income categories is exhausted, the surplus applications are included in the table of standby applications of the specific list and can be financed if: The public expenditure is increased by a subsequent decision. Public expenditure is released due to the non-use of a voucher or its redemption at a lower value than anticipated (fund release). Any upgrading of applications from standby to approved is carried out by the Certification and Payment Authority, which verifies the adequacy of funds and activates additional applications in order of priority on the Program's digital platform. This act of upgrading standby applications and their activation constitutes a determinative decision, without requiring further action from the Implementation and Control Authority. To calculate the expenditure of public funds per application, 80% of the maximum nominal value of a voucher is considered for each income category (taking into account VAT funding = 24%), i.e.: €748.00 for the 3rd income category (€935.00 x 80%). €823.20 for the 2nd income category (€1,029.00 x 80%). €897.60 for the 1st income category (€1,122.00 x 80%). Announcement of Results - Objections The results of the ranking in the previous paragraph are validated by a relevant Decision of the Implementation and Control Authority and are communicated - as provisional - on the Program's website, with simultaneous notification to all applicants. Regarding the decision, the right to file objections is provided by the beneficiaries. The possibility of objection is foreseen in cases where there is a subjective evaluative factor or a possibility of miscalculation by the competent authorities. However, due to the mass nature of the Program and the automatic cross-referencing of data, the Certification and Payment Authority is not obliged to consider objections that challenge the calculation data of eligibility and scoring criteria, as they are derived from official electronic records of the public sector, specifically through the online services of paragraph 5.1. Objections are submitted electronically via email within an exclusive deadline of seven (7) calendar days from the day following the announcement of the provisional results. To allow the examination of the objection, it must necessarily include: The unique code of the application submitted on the Program's digital platform for identification purposes. The VAT number of the beneficiary/applicant. Documentation of any calculation error and the attachment of the relevant evidence. Each objection is examined as to the formal part, and if it meets the requirements, it is also investigated as to its substance. If an objection is accepted, the Objections Committee adjusts the eligibility and scoring criteria, modifying the overall score of the application if necessary. Subsequently, taking into account the results of the examination of objections, the ranking order is redefined, based on the provisional tables, and the final tables of approved/standby applications per Region are issued. There is no right to object to the final tables. The results of the final ranking are validated by a relevant Decision of the Implementation and Control Authority and are communicated on the Program's website, with simultaneous notification to all applicants. Beneficiaries whose applications are classified in the tables of approved applications can proceed with the issuance of the corresponding vouchers. Criteria for the Ranking of Funding Applications Concerning the calculation of ranking criteria, the following data are taken into account: Income tax declaration data for the income tax year "reference" (tax year 2021) and the relevant incomes resulting from the act of determining the tax for the same year. Disability certificate data provided through the Disability Certification Center (KEPA).