A new EU regulation will soon come into force, which will already outline some options for green funding. Changes in the economy have made companies reconsider their decisions. Due to the proposal on climate neutrality, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to zero by 2050;
thus, by 2030, a reduction of 55% compared to 1990 should be achieved.
The Green Deal package, published by the European Commission, provides more than € 260 billion a year in support to encourage this.
We can hear numerous arguments that we should follow the direction lead by the Green Deal while rebuilding the economy. Low carbon emissions and resource efficiency are key. To encourage this an EU regulation, called Taxonomy Regulation was passed, which offers a professional help for an environmentally friendly economy. The basic principle is that an activity can be considered “green”, if it contributes significantly to the achievement of the environmental objectives just mentioned.
Separate distinctions should be made between electricity and heat production, biomass, biogas, biofuel production, district heating and different types of cogeneration (combined heat and power). The technology-neutral threshold is 100 g CO²e per kilowatt hour. This value should be reduced to zero every 5 years. However, in the case of gas-fired power plants, this cannot be achieved, so other techniques need to be used here.
The situation is similar for the production of thermal energy from waste incineration, as it has a detrimental effect and is therefore not eligible. Another questionable area is nuclear energy, where the adverse effects on environmental objectives cannot be clearly established. The inclusion of these technologies in Taxonomy is not yet supported by experts.
In the case of solar power plants, the CO² threshold number is also used by Taxonomy, here we can expect significant GHG emissions. The member states of the European Union, including Hungary, must create their financial regulations related to financial products on the basis of Taxonomy. So there are specific objectives, we need to look at our opportunities in every field of industry.
Leave a Reply