There will be no funding for the construction of an incinerator. The application does not include a heating network.

• The National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management rejected the application of the Energia Jarocin company for co-financing the construction of a waste incineration plant.
• The applicant did not document or substantiate the possibility of financing the required own contribution, including funds for recapitalization of the company in the amount of at least 15% of the eligible cost, the Fund reported.
• The investment costs were estimated at PLN 389 million. They were to be covered by a grant (PLN 70.5 million) and a loan (PLN 198.5 million) from the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, a bank loan (PLN 73 million), and an own contribution of PLN 47.5 million.

The National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management announced a negative assessment of the project and the rejection of Energia Jarocina's application for funding for the construction of an incineration plant. The justification for the decision stated:

“The applicant did not document or substantiate the possibility of financing the required own contribution, including funds for recapitalization of the company in the amount of at least 15% of the eligible cost, which is required when implementing the project under the project finance formula.”

As the Fund reported, Energia Jarocin did not substantiate the possibility of building a heat pipeline that would transmit heat to Veolia Zachód , which supplies heat in the Jarocin area, and therefore the revenues from the sale of heat assumed in the financial model cannot be considered achievable.

The submitted documentation also revealed a lack of consistency between the submitted documents , e.g. between the application form and the feasibility study in terms of the requested amounts from the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, or between the feasibility study and the financial model in terms of the assumed prices of electricity, heat and RDF disposal fees.

The application estimated investment costs at PLN 389 million. These were to be covered by a grant (PLN 70.5 million) and a loan (PLN 198.5 million) from the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management, a bank loan (PLN 73 million), and an own contribution of PLN 47.5 million. The municipal company did not have the funds to provide a 15% own contribution, so the application stipulated that it would obtain these funds through the acquisition of shares in the company by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management.

The negative decision of the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management cannot be a surprise, because already in the autumn of 2024, during the session of the City Council, we presented to the councilors the results of the analysis of the preparation of the project for the construction of a waste incineration plant in Golina.

- says Robert Kaźmierczak, the commune secretary who supervises the company.

He adds that the Fund's management board has now confirmed what was said earlier.

- But this is also what could have been suspected during the previous term, when many important facts regarding this investment were hidden from councilors and residents - adds Kaźmierczak.

According to the current authorities, the councilors were misled by saying that the financial structure of the project would be finalized by the National Fund for Environmental Protection and Water Management taking over shares in Energia Jarocin.

According to the project's assumptions, the Golina incinerator was to burn waste processed into so-called RDF, which is neither recyclable nor suitable for landfill. The problem is that, to date, the Wielkopolska Recycling Center has not produced RDF at all, only pre-RDF.

According to the municipality, the construction of an RDF production hall was only included in the WCR investment plan in June of this year. Processing pre-RDF into RDF could reduce costs at the WCR and, consequently, slow the growth of waste fees paid by residents.