The Hungarian government is introducing a national program to enhance the country’s biogas and biomethane production, a first of its kind that will be supported by a substantial financial allocation of €100 million (~$114 million).
Viktor Horvath, Deputy State Secretary for Energy Transition unveiled the new program during his speech at the recent biogas summit held at Budapest.
Horvath said the comprehensive program will cover the entire biogas production process, from the gathering and storage of raw materials phase through all stages of processing, up to the integration with the national energy infrastructure.
The level of financial assistance provided will be determined by the scope of individual projects.
Larger proposals can qualify for considerable grants between approximately €1.25 million (~$1.43million) to €12.5 million (~14.25 million), while smaller businesses will be eligible for grants ranging from €500,000 (~$570 million) to €2 million (~$2.28 million).
Applications for the program are anticipated to open in mid-July and remain accessible until mid-September.
Hungary currently falls behind some of its Central and Eastern European neighbours, such as the Czech Republic and Poland, in biogas and biomethane production, says Horvath.
The government is ramping up efforts to boost biogas output to 600 million cubic metres by 2030.
Biomethane production would also be increased from the current 5 million cubic metres to nearly 200 million cubic metres by the end of the decade.
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