Economy Ministry Preparing Scenarios for Targeted Energy Aid
dnes 15:31
Bratislava, 5 August (TASR) - Economy Ministry has prepared several scenarios for targeted energy subsidies for 2026, with the final shape to be decided by the Slovak government, the ministry announced on Tuesday, adding that assistance should be automatic, fast, and effective, without residents having to visit the authorities in person.
"The first step was to draw up the necessary legislation. This allowed us to link the existing registers and data that I had personally prepared and implemented whilst at the Interior Ministry, so that we could create a comprehensive system that allowed us to come up with several alternative proposals for paying the targeted energy subsidies to households," said Economy Minister Denisa Sakova (Voice-SD).
She explained that income and consumption will be the key factors in determining the recipients of aid, with the greatest emphasis placed on vulnerable groups such as pensioners, single-parent families, and those with disabilities.
As part of the process, the ministry had to supplement the register of addresses involving nearly two million households with apartment numbers by automated means, while also interlinking 223 supplier and distributor databases, as well as processing more than 3,000 files from the land registry, health insurance companies, the social-security provider Socialna Poistovna, the financial administration, and other institutions.
The ministry also identified the so-called "energy households", meaning those comprised of persons with permanent residence at a given address.
The Economy Ministry presented the prepared alternative options for targeted energy subsidies to Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD). Subsequently, they will be submitted to the Slovak government for discussion.
jrg/mcs/ko