EU to propose new rules, support for certain green industries, document shows

Joanna Plucinska
Fri, March 3, 2023 

European Commission President Ursula presents a "communication" detailing the EU's "Green Deal Industrial Plan" in Brussels


LONDON (Reuters) - The European Union's executive body is set to provide permits, regulatory support and easier access to public and private funding for certain strategic green technologies, according to a draft document seen by Reuters.

The draft regulation is designed to ensure "the net-zero technology manufacturing capacity in the Union is sufficient to meet at least 40% of the Union's annual deployment needs," the document says.

The EU is concerned that European companies will move to the United States, which has a $369 billion scheme to subsidise green production.

In January, European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said the steps would be part of the EU's Green Deal industrial plan to make Europe the home of clean technology and industrial innovation on the road to net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The legislation will be designed to support technologies, including solar photovoltaic and solar thermal, onshore and offshore wind, battery, heat pumps and geothermal energy, renewable hydrogen, biomethane, nuclear, fission and grid tech, according to an annex attached to the document.

The technologies "have, according to the International Energy Agency, reached a technology readiness level of at least 8," with some exceptions, the draft said.

Certain technologies, such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), were not included in the draft as potential candidates for the support scheme. The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act does include support for SAF.

The rules would also support auctions to deploy renewable energy sources, adapt innovation funds and provide easier access to public-private procurement.

If the goals aren't achieved by 2030, the European Commission will propose "additional measures aimed at covering the identified gaps," the draft says.

The European Commission declined to comment on the draft document, which an industry source said was expected to be released in the coming weeks.