Slovakia energy spending: Subsidies vs. efficiency

Slovakia has spent nearly 5 billion euros on energy price compensations since 2022, a measure that has failed to reduce household energy consumption. Experts from the Buildings for the Future platform warn that these subsidies are recurring expenses that do not address the underlying issue of inefficient buildings. In contrast, the state-funded 'Obnov dom' program, designed to improve energy efficiency, saw its single annual call for applications exhausted in just 45 minutes, with 17,000 applicants competing for only 5,000 available spots.

On a local level, the city of Komárno is implementing energy efficiency measures using approximately 198,000 euros in EU funds from the Sustainable Urban Development fund. The city is installing photovoltaic panels and battery storage systems at various municipal institutions, including a leisure center, a nursery school, and an art school. These investments follow previous modernization efforts, such as a 2-million-euro upgrade to public lighting, aimed at reducing long-term operational costs and reliance on the grid.