The key legislative changes in 2025 impacting the Hungarian renewable energy sector include:
Solar Net Metering Reform
A 2024 amendment ended the annual net metering system. New residential solar systems must switch to monthly gross settlement after 10 years, so summer excess generation no longer offsets winter use. This change, made to comply with EU regulations, has been controversial – solar owners say it sharply reduces their savings, while the government argues payback periods still remain around a decade.
Feed-In Tariff Update
Government Decree 26/2025 (effective March 1, 2025) revised the renewable support scheme (METAR/KAT). It exempts TSO-ordered curtailment energy from counting against producers in feed-in tariff settlements, eliminating penalty charges for emergency grid shutdowns and improving project bankability. This adjustment reduces financial uncertainty for renewable investors by ensuring unavoidable curtailments do not erode their incentives.
Wind Energy Liberalization
Hungary eased its long-standing wind power restrictions, effectively ending a decade-long freeze. Effective Jan 2024, the minimum turbine setback distance was cut from 12 kilometers to 700 meters and the special tender requirement for new wind farms was repealed. In 2025, the Energy Ministry proposed designated “facilitated zones” in 17 high-wind districts to allow taller turbines (up to 199 meters) and expedited permitting, with local consent, aiming for the first new wind farms by 2029.
Grid Connection Moratorium and Reform
Rapid solar growth strained Hungary’s grid. Between 2022 and 2024, no new grid capacity was granted to solar or wind projects, leaving a queue of applications pushed into the late 2020s. To address this, Government Decree 54/2024 introduced an order-of-preference system: network operators must reject any generation project that cannot be connected by 2030. The decree also suspended the biannual capacity allocation process pending a new regime, so no general grid tenders occurred in early 2025. In 2025, the Electricity Act was further amended to increase transparency and predictability in capacity allocation. A new grid capacity tendering system is under development and expected to reopen interconnection opportunities in 2025-2026.
Energy Storage and Co-Location
New 2025 rules explicitly allow battery energy storage systems to share grid connection points with generation units. This enables co-located solar-plus-storage or wind-plus-storage projects, enhancing flexibility and on-site consumption. The government also provided major grants (hundreds of billions of forints) for large-scale batteries and grid upgrades in 2025 to improve renewable integration.
Energy Communities Framework
Hungary transposed EU provisions on renewable energy communities, allowing collective generation and consumption of power by groups of consumers. Community renewable projects up to 0.5 megawatts now benefit from simplified, license-exempt operation. Only a few pilot energy communities exist (supported by EU recovery grants), but further rules to enable energy sharing and favorable tariffs are expected as the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED III) is implemented.
Diversification Initiatives
The government moved to broaden the renewable mix beyond solar. In 2025, new tenders were launched for geothermal district heating projects. A Biomethane Action Plan rolled out approximately HUF 40 billion in grants and premium tariffs to spur biogas upgrading into the gas grid, and a renewable gas Guarantees of Origin system was created to certify green gas production. While no major green hydrogen projects began in 2025, Hungary prepared to transpose the EU Hydrogen and Decarbonized Gas Package to establish a regulatory framework for hydrogen energy.
EU Alignment and Outlook
All these 2025 measures are part of Hungary’s effort to fully meet EU Fit for 55 climate obligations and updated 2030 national renewable targets. For instance, the revised National Energy and Climate Plan foresees wind capacity tripling to 1 gigawatt by 2030, reflecting the new wind-friendly policies. Still, the country lagged on some requirements – notably, it has not designated any expedited renewable acceleration areas by late 2025, missing interim EU deadlines for simplified permitting zones. Going forward, effective implementation of the new rules, accelerated grid investments, and scaling up wind, geothermal, and biogas projects (as well as establishing the promised acceleration zones) will be critical for Hungary to achieve its climate goals. With a more supportive legal framework now in place and EU funds available, the renewable energy outlook for the country is cautiously optimistic for the rest of the decade.
By Robert Szuchy, Managing Partner, BSLAW Budapest – Szuchy Law Office
This article was originally published in Issue 12.10 of the CEE Legal Matters Magazine. If you would like to receive a hard copy of the magazine, you can subscribe here.
