Companies will not return ETMEAR.

The ETMEAR (Special Tax for Reducing Emissions of Gaseous Pollutants) amounts that hundreds of commercial and tourist companies have to pay for the years 2019-2020 have not been refunded, as announced by the Minister of Environment and Energy, Theodoros Skylakakis, among other things. The minister stressed that “the ETMEAR will not be imposed at the expense of small and medium-sized companies because it is not their fault”.

It’s about subsidies. Who got thousands of electricity consumption establishments which were submitted with wrong calculations Ultimately, they must be “returned.” The government’s decision on retroactive refunds has sparked justifiable reactions.

According to the responsible minister, the reason is There is no provision to support businesses through bill support, as will be the case with resident consumers, This is because “any such intervention in business would require an EU blueprint,” which is not expected at this stage.

According to Mr. Skylakakis, “Any intervention requires the approval of the Commission. Companies at the same time have an invoice changer, For example, farmers have no reason to suffer at any cost. Companies can seek a solution by changing the tariff.”

After all, it was also decided at the prime minister level. There will be no refund regarding ETMEAR, which is hundreds of millions of euros.

problem The immediate return of the discounted ETMEAR, from companies that received support without being entitled to it. However, this measure is absolutely necessary in order to provide support, even with a significant delay, to the industries that are the real beneficiaries. Which is due for approximately 120 million euros for the three years 2021-2023.

In fact, this is what EBIKEN (Industrial Energy Consumers Association) pointed out in a letter addressed to Environment and Energy Minister Theodore Skilakakis, putting “his finger on the types of energy”. For a “burning” case for survival, at a critical juncture of intense international competition for the industry, With the support of the USA, Germany and China creating a huge advantage for the remaining Greek industrial competitors.

Obviously, the amount is large and does not compare to the situation of companies that have power sources with a capacity of 35 kVA. Which should return about 2 million euros. After all, In the event of a reduction in ETMEAR, the numbers change as the total is expected to reach 600 million euros.

The three moves announced by Mr. Skylakakis for electricity:

• Re-imposing natural gas electricity generation fees on an emergency basis for two months. The exact height will be announced in the coming days.
• Family allowance that will be related to August 2024. More will be announced in late July and early August to see how wholesale and retail prices will move.
• At the same time, we will legislatively incorporate the new European directive. About the emergency mechanism that we will implementHowever, we will put in place an additional clause for the benefit of consumers, which stipulates the imposition of an intervention mechanism in the event of deformities with endemic characteristics, with the approval of the Authority.