New Green Savings will initially bring 1.4 billion for the insulation of houses

Prague - At the beginning of the New Green Savings program, the state will reimburse a total of 1.4 billion crowns for insulation to homeowners. The program will include work commenced from January 1 of next year. Citizens will be able to submit applications for grants for house reconstruction from August. At a press conference at the government headquarters, Environment Minister Tomáš Chalupa (ODS) told reporters. The government expects the grant program to create 70,000 jobs and support more energy-efficient housing.
    The program will run from next year until 2020. "Above all, we will avoid the mistakes that were contained in the original program," said Prime Minister Petr Nečas. The government will finance the grants with money obtained from the auction of emission allowances. The state is expected to earn about 28 billion crowns from these. An additional ten billion will be obtained from the European Union.
    "We estimate the absorption capacity of the program until 2020 at 80 to 100 billion crowns. This means it would be effective to invest an even larger amount from European funds than the mentioned ten billion," said Petr Holub, coordinator of the initiative Chance for Buildings, to ČTK.
    According to Nečas, insulating houses is a better stimulus for the economy than massive support for photovoltaics. "The program will primarily benefit small and medium-sized enterprises, which today have a harder time accessing contracts in construction," Nečas noted. According to him, the grants will also stimulate services, transport, and production related to construction. The Prime Minister also expects that the program, in addition to reconstructions, will support the construction of new, more environmentally friendly settlements, such as energy-efficient passive houses.
    One million in support from the program is expected to create 2.7 jobs under defined conditions, totaling 75,600 jobs, as stated in the presentation of the Ministry of the Environment (MŽP). "In the past, construction companies obtained a number of contracts through this state program, providing job opportunities to many employees. The Union of Entrepreneurs in Construction thus welcomes the launch of the program," said Union President Václav Matyáš to ČTK.
    One crown of state support from the new program will bring an additional 96 halers into the state budget, which is expected to total over 26 billion crowns.
    Financial support will mainly target homeowners. Public buildings will account for 30 percent of the supported reconstructions. The amount of support in the program will, according to the Ministry of the Environment (MŽP), depend on the share of saved energy. Homeowners will not be able to receive support from other grant programs.
    "Now it is important for the Ministry of the Environment to set up the program well and minimize administrative barriers," noted Holub from Chance for Buildings.
    The program replacing the Green Savings belongs to measures aimed at helping to restore economic growth. Manufacturers of polystyrene and other insulating materials eagerly await the new program supporting energy savings. The MŽP anticipates that the support will not solely be a grant, but part of it will be in the form of loans.

Table 1 - dependence of the share of state support on energy savings achieved through reconstruction:

Reduction of heating demand by at least 40%	Support 25% of costs
Reduction of heating demand by at least 50%	Support 35% of costs
Reduction of heating demand by at least 60%	Support 50% of costs

Table 2 - distribution of the state subsidy funds:

Residential buildings - reconstruction	55%
Residential buildings - new construction	15%
Public service buildings - reconstruction	24%
Public service buildings - new construction	6%