“My Electricity” Program Effectiveness Supporting the Development of PV Installation in Poland

Piotr Olczak,Marta Kuta,Dominik Kryzia,Dominika Matuszewska

doi:10.3390/en14010231

Abstract

There are a lot of studies that show the legitimacy of subsidizing renewable energy; however, some mechanisms are defective, and there are problems with the appropriate allocation of funds. Therefore, this paper aims to look at the situation of allocating funds to photovoltaics (PV) micro-installations in Poland through the “My Electricity” program. The article presents the results of analyses aimed at identifying inequalities between provinces in the use of funds available under the “My Electricity” program and verifying whether these inequalities are getting worse and whether the intensity of support should not be territorially conditioned in terms of maximization an electricity production. As part of two editions of the “My Electricity” program (until 1 August 2020), over 64,000 PV micro-installations were created with an average power of approximately 5.7 kWp. The total installed PV capacity was 367.1 MWp (1st edition: 159.3 MWp, 2nd edition: 207.8 MWp). Financial resources (as a whole), in the second edition of “My Electricity” program, were distributed better than in the first edition. In the first edition, as much as 7.60% of funds were allocated inefficiently; in the second edition, it was only 3.88%. Allocation surpluses occur in provinces where the average disposable income is low and where there are a small number of households. There is a potential to introduce a territorial project selection criteria. The analysis shows that the criteria should promote provinces with higher disposable income and a larger number of households.

Highlights

IntroductionPublic policy aimed at supporting the production of energy from renewable sources (RES) has largely focused on encouraging investments in technologies using wind and solar resources, which has led to the recent increase in the capacity of installations supplied by these energy sources [1,2]
In climate policy, renewable energy has become the main contributor to mitigating climate change by reducing dependence on fossil fuels and carbon dioxide (CO2 ) emissions.public policy aimed at supporting the production of energy from renewable sources (RES) has largely focused on encouraging investments in technologies using wind and solar resources, which has led to the recent increase in the capacity of installations supplied by these energy sources [1,2]
Public policy aimed at supporting the production of energy from renewable sources (RES) has largely focused on encouraging investments in technologies using wind and solar resources, which has led to the recent increase in the capacity of installations supplied by these energy sources [1,2]

Summary

Introduction

Public policy aimed at supporting the production of energy from renewable sources (RES) has largely focused on encouraging investments in technologies using wind and solar resources, which has led to the recent increase in the capacity of installations supplied by these energy sources [1,2]. Designing a renewable energy policy in an efficient, environmentally friendly, and socially equitable way requires an understanding of the impact of individual measures (support programs, subsidies, tax breaks, etc.) on the renewable energy market itself. Replacing conventional fossil technologies with generation from renewable sources leads to a reduction in CO2 emissions in energy production (the so-called exchange effect). There is a price effect by pushing producers with high marginal costs out of the market and a decline in the wholesale electricity price (which reduces the profits of energy producers using conventional energy technologies). In the light of this, it seems extremely important to properly allocate aid funds in RES by specifying the criteria determining the intensity of support [2,5]

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Discussion

Conclusion