The Ministry of Climate and Transport is in the process of distributing up to 7.9 billion kroner in subsidies to the business community, without the ministries having sufficient control over how many CO2 reductions this will entail. This is the assessment of the State Auditors, who issued sharp criticism in a report on Monday.
Specifically, the National Audit Office has examined six subsidy pools, spanning from 2020-2030. The pools are not being managed correctly, and this gives an incomplete picture of the effect of the billion-kroner subsidy, it is noted.
The consequence of this is that it is unclear how many CO2 reductions have been achieved, and whether the pools make the expected contribution to achieving the goals of the Climate Act, the report states.
The State Auditors highlight several elements in which the ministries have not managed the pools satisfactorily. In 50 cases, the funds for a pool have been reduced, but in only one case has this led to a change in expectations of how much CO2 the pools will reduce. This makes it unclear whether the CO2 reductions that were announced will actually be realized.
Several of the grant pools are targeted at replacing gas boilers or rolling out district heating. The pools should collectively reduce 400,000 tons of CO2 in 2025 and 650,000 tons of CO2 in 2030. These are estimates that may change depending on how much money is paid out in grants.
As a "general rule", has not assessed adjustments to targets
However, the study shows that the Ministry of Climate Change has not assessed, as a "general rule", whether the targets should be adjusted when the assumptions have changed.
This applies both when money has been removed and added. In the case of the District Heating Fund, significantly more money has been added, without the reduction target having been changed.
The results of the study are also drawing criticism from political quarters. The Conservatives are now summoning Climate Minister Lars Aagaard for consultation on the matter.
- Six billion kroner has been spent, but it is not possible to account for whether anything has been gained from it. This is deeply worrying, says Energy and Utilities Spokesperson Dina Raabjerg (K).
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