Energy, Financial Services, Latvia, Legislation

The Economics Ministry said that it had taken a number of measures to reduce the MPC payments within the existing system yet the amounts paid out in the green energy and cogeneration support remained high.

Last year EUR 193.6 million euros were paid to producers of green energy for electric power generated by 403 power plants under the MPC scheme and five cogeneration plants received EUR 193.6 million as the guaranteed fee for installed power generation capacity.

Aseradens said it was obvious that the existing MPC financing model had become morally obsolete and a group of experts should be tasked with finding a way to replace the old inefficient model with a new one that would be consistent with the future interests of the society.

"The MPC payments by households and companies amounting to many millions of euros must be stopped and a new mechanism created for further development of green energy and renewable energy sources in Latvia," the economics minister said.

"We have to look for innovative and effective solutions to support green energy, possibly based on the market principles instead of relying on the state subsidies and payments by consumers," Aseradens said.