Subsidy 1: Investment aid for renewable energy and new energy technologies

• Decree 688/2001
• Decree 1098/2017

A technology-neutral support scheme grants subsidy for RES projects, energy efficiency projects and new energy technologies. Investment aid may be granted against a fixed assets investment. The main aim of the scheme is to support investments, which could not be realised without public funding and that help reaching Finland’s RES and climate obligations and goals.
The aid can cover costs caused by planning, construction, and material purchases (including land but with conditions) (Art 10 Decree 1098/2017).
There are different sub-funds available within the RES investment aid scheme. In 2021, two main large investment instruments are:
- Investment aid for large demonstration projects: The government has allocated EUR 60 million/year for 2020-2021 for pilot projects featuring a novel technology, which is not specified further in the legal sources. The eligible projects should be of demonstrative nature and have a high scalability potential, and help with reaching national and European RES 2030 obligations. The call is open for RES-H projects featuring a technology that does not rely on burning anything, such as geothermal or ambient heat.
- Investment aid for projects replacing coal in energy generation: The government has allocated EUR 90 million in its 2021 budget in order to support projects that support the governmental goal of phasing out coal by the end of 2025. This investment aid is available for projects replacing coal in RES-E and RES-H sectors and that could not be carried out without government support by 2025. Government support can cover a maximum of 30% of the total project costs (40% when deploying a new technology).
The government allocated EUR 60 million to this support scheme in its 2020 budget. The 2021 proposed budget amounts to EUR 60 million, as well.

Under Decree 1098/2017, the investment aid is granted against a fixed assets investment with eligible costs exceeding € 5,000,000. Investment aid can be up to 40 per cent of the total project costs Arts 5 and 10, Decree 1098/2017). The legal sources do not specify a maximum sum granted to a single addressee but in years 2020 and 2021, the total budget for the support scheme is EUR 60 million.

Aid recipients can be companies, municipalities and other entities, excluding housing companies, residential properties and farms (Art 7 Decree 1098/2017).

All applications are submitted electronically to Business Finland regardless of the size of the project, and they are accepted on a rolling basis around the year. Energy aid can only be granted for projects that have not been initiated yet, and only for expenses taking place after the date of the positive energy aid decision. Processing an application will take approximately 2 months.
The competent authorities will assess the projects based on the amount applied for, the energy impact of the project, cost-efficiency, feasibility, novelty, replicability, and other effects (Arts 6 and 9 Decree 1098/2017).

Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment; Business Finland