Next year there will be a further price adjustment in the budgets of the ministries for the financing of schools, cultural institutions, associations and other organizations of the (semi)collective sector. This is necessary because regular indexing had taken place before the sharp price increases. The House of Representatives presented specific motions on the matter.
In addition, the swimming pools will receive €207 million for their energy costs in 2022 and 2023. An emergency fund of €6 million will be set up for 3,600 amateur sports clubs that have high energy costs. 30 million euros will be reserved for healthcare institutions in difficulty.
How will all this be paid for? The maximum price of the energy bill is expected to cost around 11.2 billion euros. The energy cost allowance for energy-intensive SMEs is estimated at €1.65 billion. “To cover these costs, a solidarity levy will be levied on excess profits in the fossil fuel sector in 2022, which is expected to yield 3.2 billion euros,” says Akkerman.
And there will also be a tax on producers generating electricity using solar, wind and nuclear technology, who can make big profits at low cost now that electricity prices are so high. This levy is currently being processed; the yield is not yet known. An additional 7.5 billion is estimated to be needed to cover energy support measures. This could increase further if energy prices continue to rise.