Steven N.The official price controls on fuel and food products will remain in place, announced Gergely Gulyás, Minister in charge of the Prime Minister’s Office, in Saturday’s Government Information briefing. In addition, the freeze on mortgage interest rates will be extended for another six months.
The government is also not changing its revamped utility subsidy policy, after previously announcing it would only apply to families that consume less than the average level. Gulyás stated that the government’s calculations showed that many people fall below the average consumption level, but they can also see that a large portion of the population has begun cutting back on its consumption.
New regulations were also announced by Minister of Economic Development Márton Nagy:
- So-called energy-intensive producers, whose energy costs reached net 3% in 2021, will be eligible for state subsidies from October 1 to the end of 2023. Under this scheme, the state will reimburse half of the increase in electricity and gas bills for qualifying small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in the last three months of the year, relative to the previous year.
- A new government subsidy is also being created for long-term energy efficiency projects, but applicable SMEs will not be allowed to let go more than 10% of their workforce by the end of 2023 in order to qualify.
- The government is also considering a factory bailout program, which will help large-scale industrial companies by providing subsidies for energy efficiency projects. The details of this plan can be expected in the next few weeks.
- Also under consideration is a new action plan for protecting jobs, but details on this will likewise be provided at a later date.
