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Cypriot citizens and legal persons owning renewable energy systems can apply from February 14 for grants to add batteries. The EUR 35 million program is funded from the European Union’s Just Transition Fund.
The Council of Ministers of Cyprus approved the Grant Scheme for Energy Storage Systems in Combination with Renewable Energy Sources in November. Ahead of the start of the application process on February 14, the Ministry of Energy, Trade and Industry published a guide. It said the EUR 35 million plan would reduce electricity costs for citizens and advance the island country’s green energy transition.
Household consumers will also benefit from reducing curtailments of renewable energy production the excess will be stored, the document reads. Energy storage lowers the delivery of electricity to the grid, increasing the space for more household photovoltaics, according to the ministry.
Natural and legal persons active in the renewable energy sector are eligible for participation. The deadline for submissions through the ministry’s platform is March 28. The grants were earmarked via the EU’s Just Transition Fund.
Larger renewable energy plants require three-hour BESS
The storage system’s maximum input-output power should match the installed capacity of the renewables unit.
For production units of up to 120 kW (for photovoltaics – in peak terms), the battery energy storage system (BESS) must operate for at least two hours at full power. For instance, a 100 kW storage system would have a capacity of 200 kWh or more.
Above 120 kW, the requirement is three hours, while for biomass power plants it is just one hour. There are four categories.
The largest part, EUR 25 million, is for renewable electricity installations that receive feed-in tariffs (FiTs) of up to EUR 166 per MWh. The maximum grants are EUR 100,000 per MWh of capacity. Owners of wind and solar power systems in the category can get as much as EUR 300,000 per MW of capability – operating power, per facility. The upper limit for biomass is EUR 115,000 per MW.
Most of the funding goes to beneficiaries of feed-in tariffs of up to EUR 166 per MWh of capacity of their renewable energy system
Wind and solar power systems with FiTs between EUR 166 per MWh and EUR 250 per MWh can get up to EUR 50,000 per MWh of storage capacity and EUR 100,000 per MW. The budget for the segment is EUR 2.5 million.
The same total amount is for the FiT category of EUR 250 per MWh and EUR 340 per MWh. Maximum grants for BESS for solar and wind are EUR 25,000 per MWh and EUR 50,000 per MW of operating power.
There is EUR 5 million for self-consumption systems using the net-billing or self-generation method. Each can receive as much as 75,000 per MWh. Here the grants cover a maximum of 70% of expenses.
Charging from power grid limited to 25% of battery capacity
The ministry said the scheme can facilitate the installation of energy storage facilities of 150 MW in total capability and 350 MWh in capacity. Beneficiaries will have nine months to complete the works for up to 1 MW and no more than one year for larger BESS, it added in the guide.
The batteries will be allowed to absorb electricity from the grid for up to 25%, under an annual net metering regime. The application fee is EUR 2,500, while bank guarantees are also required for larger projects.
Of note, last year Cyprus imposed curtailments on 20 days, for 167 GWh in total, and on nine days in January 2025. It is the only non-interconnected country in the EU, so it is struggling to handle the surplus in solar power production.
Between February 2024 and last month, total photovoltaic capacity grew 21% to 797.1 MW, while in the wind segment it remained at 157 MW.
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