Funds under Sixth Call of House Renovation Scheme Rise to Over €133 million

Bratislava, 16 September (TASR) - Environment Minister Tomas Taraba (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) has decided that the funds allocated under the sixth call of the home renovation scheme will be raised from €107.54 million to €133.55 million, thus allowing all applicants in the pool of projects to renovate their homes, the Environment Ministry's communications department told TASR on Tuesday. "With this decision, we guarantee that not a single euro under the scheme will go to waste. All unused funds from projects with primary energy savings reaching less than 60 percent will be directed to support for additional family houses," said Taraba. According to general director of the Slovak Environment Agency (SAZP) Juraj Moravcik, the aim was to set up a system in which applicants wouldn't have to compete on a 'first come, first served basis', while at the same time providing continuous financing for the sixth call. The funds will therefore be granted to all applicants who complied with the conditions. In the weeks ahead, SAZP will be gradually sending out draft contracts to an additional 1,367 owners of houses who have only made it into the pool of projects so far. The renovations must be completed by the end of March of next year. To date, more than €234 million has already been paid out under the scheme to households for renovating and thermally insulating over 15,000 houses across Slovakia. Taraba said that as demand is constantly growing, ways were sought to cover an even larger number of households in the coming years, especially due to rising energy prices. The ministry's priority is to make sure that aid will primarily reach those who are at risk of energy poverty. jrg/df