(...) The Environmental Investment Fund, which administers the heating system replacement programme, is asking interested parties to wait and promises that the unfulfillable regulations will change. However, this is not happening because such boilers do not exist, but because the geopolitical situation has changed. Following the start of the war in Ukraine, it is intended to propose lowering the class required by the support programme from A+++ to A+. The amendments to the regulations are expected to be ready within a month.

Private house owners can also receive up to 5,000 euros if they replace gas heating with a connection to the municipal district heating system. As “Nekā personīga” points out, this VARAM idea is not popular. At “Rīgas siltums”, only five people have enquired about such an option over the course of a month.

It has already been reported that the support programme developed by VARAM provides for the provision of support for the replacement of fossil fuel equipment, such as natural gas, diesel fuel, and coal, with new equipment using renewable energy sources – biomass pellet boilers, heat pumps, solar collectors, or connection to a centralised district heating system.