We remind you that the state support scheme for companies and professionals, which allows the reduction of energy bills, was established by Law 259/2021, published in the Official Gazette (Part I) no. 1036 / 29.10.2021, this being applied strictly for the cold season 2021 – 2022. However, in order for these legal provisions to be put into practice, procedural norms were also needed, which the Ministry of Energy published in the Official Gazette no. 1143 of November 27, 2021.
Thus, ME Order no. 1240/2021 provides that the beneficiaries may submit to the natural gas and electricity suppliers a request and a declaration on their own responsibility. Basically, it is a single form, the model of which is attached to Order 1240/2021.
“The application, accompanied by the declaration on its own responsibility (…), can be submitted during the application period of the scheme, following that the facility will be granted by the suppliers starting with the month of submitting the application. In the absence of a declaration, the request cannot be considered. As an exception, for November 2021, the application can be submitted in December 2021 “, according to the normative act, specifying that the scheme is valid between November 1, 2021 – March 31, 2022.
In situations where there are problems with the request and the declaration, the suppliers can request clarifications from companies and professionals (which are answered within a maximum of five calendar days) or even the restoration of documents. Even if clarification or re-submission is required, the application is considered submitted on the date of initial submission of the document.
We mention that the suppliers are obliged to inform, through their own websites, about the ways in which the applications are submitted.
“Providers are obliged to use all channels of communication with end customers provided by applicable law and do not have the right to limit the options of beneficiaries for the transmission of requests,” the document states.
It is important to note that, in the draft form of the order, the compensation scheme was intended to be inaccessible to those in the process of dissolution or bankruptcy. It would also have been inaccessible for those who lose or have their license revoked or lose their right to exercise the profession. But in the official form of the order these restrictions were removed.
According to Order 1240/2021, the beneficiaries of the state scheme are:
– micro-enterprises: those that have up to nine employees and achieve a net annual turnover or have total assets of up to two million euros, equivalent in lei;
– small enterprises: those that have between ten and 49 employees and achieve a net annual turnover or have total assets of up to ten million euros, equivalent in lei;
– medium-sized enterprises: those that have between 50 and 249 employees and achieve a net annual turnover of up to 50 million euros, equivalent in lei, or have total assets that do not exceed the equivalent in lei of 43 million euros;
– authorized natural persons, individual enterprises and family enterprises;
– individual medical offices;
– persons practicing the liberal professions, regardless of the form of organization – the indicative list of authorities includes, among others, energy auditors, financial auditors, lawyers, tax consultants, certified accountants, chartered accountants, bailiffs, licensed assessors, pharmacists, midwives, mediators, doctors, dentists, veterinarians, notaries, optometrists, insolvency practitioners, psychologists, translators and interpreters.