08/07/2021 (Agence Europe) – According to the recovery plans of France, Italy, Portugal and Spain, at least €8.3 billion of EU recovery funds will be spent on hydrogen and renewable gas projects, says an NGO report published on 8 July, highlighting the risk of funding fossil gas projects with public money. “This is the result of a concerted lobbying effort by the fossil fuels industry, including a prolific number of lobbying meetings and high-profile events with decision-makers”, said the European Network of Corporate Observatories (ENCO) and the Fossil Free Politics campaign, which brings together a number of NGOs and is the source of the report. Calling for the exclusion of the fossil fuel industry from “public decision-making processes”, the NGOs point out that the Italian government has held at least 100 meetings with the fossil fuel industry concerning stimulus funds. See the report: https://bit.ly/2Vgdjm9 (DG)