The Polish authorities are of the opinion that the future Just Transition Fund which the 'von der Leyen' Commission will table to support the adaptation of territories which are "highly" dependent on fossil fuels for electricity production to the European Union's new climate priorities, must be endowed as widely as possible and focus on those territories that need it most.
In a position entitled 'Financing carbon neutrality', sent to the Member States on Thursday 17 October and copied to EUROPE, Warsaw considers that the future fund must be "significantly larger" than currently envisaged, "on top of" the European Commission's proposal for the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework and last until "well beyond" 2027 (see EUROPE 12345/8).
The Commission has assessed the additional investment for the EU required to reach the 1.5°C objective at the level of 180-290bn EUR per year.
Above all, the Polish authorities propose the following criteria to concentrate the financial effort on the EU territories most in need: - differences in development and economic competitiveness; - the different energy mixes; - the level of CO2 emissions; - unequal access to financial capital due to more or less developed capital markets; - the unequal purchasing power of the citizens of the territories concerned.
It should be noted that Poland is taking a position on the future intervention policy of the European Investment Bank (EIB), which should make it possible to provide financial support for "gas-related projects both in terms of transmission networks and in power-generation". Even national central banks, and especially the ECB, should support a transition to a low- emission economy with "green" bond issuance.
The EIB postponed until mid-November the adoption of its new lending policy in the energy sector, with the treatment of gas projects under intense negotiation.
See the Polish document: http://bit.ly/32omVKx (Mathieu Bion)