Energy cost subsidy – pre-registration from 7 Nov 2022 to 28 Nov 2022

With the “energy cost subsidy”, the federal government has taken the first steps towards relieving the burden on energy-intensive companies. Although the necessary approval from the European Commission and the corresponding subsidy guidelines are still pending, Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH (aws) recently published an information package on the procedure and calculation of the subsidy.

Initial details on the formal procedure for applying for the energy cost subsidy were published on the homepage of Austria Wirtschaftsservice GmbH (aws) on 3 Nov 2022 with an amendment dated 5 Nov 2022 (retrieved on 5 Nov 2022):

https://www.aws.at/ukraine-krieg-sonder-foerderungsprogramme/aws-energiekostenzuschuss/

For companies that do not reach the lower limit of the energy cost subsidy of EUR 2,000, a flat-rate subsidy model is being developed. This should also enable companies whose additional energy costs in the period from 1 Feb 2022 to 30 Sep 2022 do not exceed EUR 6,666 (and therefore fall below the minimum limit of EUR 2,000 subsidy amount according to the aws energy cost subsidy) to receive a subsidy. This flat-rate subsidy model is intended to be a supplementary measure; pre-registration for the aws energy cost subsidy is not required for the companies concerned. According to the aws, information on this supplementary flat-rate funding measure will be available online after it has been developed.

The procedure for the energy cost subsidy can be summarised as follows, subject to any changes:

Step 1 – Pre-registration (mandatory)

From 7 Nov 2022 (time not yet known) until 28 Nov 2022, mandatory pre-registration (via the aws homepage) will be possible for companies, whereby the “first come, first served” principle will apply. The following data will have to be provided:

• Information on the applicant for funding (company or name, legal form, if applicable company register number or ZVR number in the case of associations with business activities).
• Information on whether the turnover of the last available annual financial statement exceeded EUR 700,000 and whether the applicant is an “energy-intensive enterprise” (see page 4 of the aws information package) (with a declaration to this effect)
• Contact details of the person authorised to represent the applicant company
• The relevant e-mail address for the application process

The company applying for funding will then be allocated a period of probably one week within which the actual application must be submitted. We expressly point out that the pre-registration is a prerequisite for submitting an application.

Step 2 – Application

Applications must be submitted to the aws Funding Manager within the allocated period. The periods for submitting the application (1 week each) will be in the time window beginning on 29 Nov 2022 and ending on 15 Feb 2023. The energy consumption, the price increase and the amount of the eligible energy expenses must be stated. Furthermore, various facts must be confirmed by a tax consultant, auditor or accountant in the course of this application. The “first come, first served” principle also applies to applications.

Step 3 – Review of the application by the aws

The application is reviewed by the aws, which may also request supplements from the company.

Step 4 – Payment of the energy cost subsidy

After the application has been approved, the energy cost subsidy will be paid to the bank account announced by the company.

The pre-registration, which will be possible from 7 Nov 2022, has to be done by the company itself, but we are happy to help with any problems.

1. The first step would be to check whether the annual turnover of the company’s last available annual financial statement did not exceed EUR 700,000 and whether a grant of at least EUR 2,000 (minimum grant amount) can be expected.
2. If the turnover of the last available annual financial statement exceeded EUR 700,000, it should be checked whether the company is classified as “energy-intensive” (see page 4 of the aws information package).

In the event that one of these points applies or could apply, it is recommended that a pre-announcement be made as soon as possible from 7 Nov 2022, as a pre-announcement should generally be made in cases of doubt.

After pre-registration, it should be ensured that all documents required for the confirmations or “findings” as well as the documents required for the application are available at the time of application after immediately contacting the appointed tax consultant / auditor / accountant.

In view of the short deadline for the actual application of probably only one week, it is recommended to prepare the required data (especially documents on energy consumption and price increases) as soon as possible. Since an application can only be submitted within the allotted period, it is necessary that all documents and data are already available when the application is submitted.

As soon as the approval of the European Commission has been received and the corresponding funding guideline has been published, we will inform in a timely manner.