The Vice President and Minister for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, Teresa Ribera, will announce this Thursday an extension of 350 million euros to the DUS 5,000 program for energy transition projects in municipalities and towns with less than 5,000 inhabitants, thus reaching 675 million. This expansion would double the budget deployed up to now and would multiply the initial amount by nine.
MITECO sources affirm that the program developed by the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDAE) has been a success. It started a year ago with 75 million euros and, shortly after, given the enormous interest of local entities, it was increased to 325 million euros. To date, more than 2,900 files have been submitted, far exceeding the available budget.
Of those 2,900 files, 1,014 entered into the expanded budget that was available until now. Among the projects presented, more than 600 self-consumption stand outmore than 400 exterior lighting, more than 300 energy efficiency or renewable air conditioning and more than 200 sustainable mobility.
The new expansion would make it possible to respond to almost 1,000 new files submitted that were on the waiting list, up to almost 2,000 files, representing more than 3,500 actions or projects. Once the expansion is done, the technical services may proceed to analyze these files which, provided they meet the criteria established in the bases, may be awarded the requested aid.
About 1,800 beneficiary municipalities
Thanks to this extension, the program would reach almost 1,800 municipalities with a demographic challenge, which have a population of more than 2.3 million inhabitants and in the last decade have lost 5% of their population.
It would also reach municipalities of all the autonomous communities: dstake the more than 450 in Castile and Leonabout 200 in Castilla la Mancha and more than 100 in Extremadura, Andalusia, Catalonia and Aragon.
Due to the definition of the municipalities with a demographic challenge, the call It is aimed at municipalities with less than 5,000 inhabitants, or municipalities with up to 20,000 inhabitants, when all the singular entities of these municipalities have less than 5,000 inhabitants and are located outside urban areas.
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The results of these calls reveal the high interest of the small municipalities of our country in promoting the energy transition as a tool to create activity and employment, improve well-being and public accounts, and combat the demographic challenge.