The European Commission announced on Monday 28 March that it is requesting World Trade Organization (WTO) consultations with the UK, pointing to discriminatory British subsidies to green energy projects. This is a first after the entry into force of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
The UK has a funding programme for green energy projects, most of which support offshore wind farms. The authorities take into account the origin of materials when granting financial support.
According to the European Commission, this criterion pushes operators to prioritise sourcing from the UK in order to have a better chance of winning the funding project. The institution considers that this is not compatible with WTO national treatment, which obliges a country to give others the same treatment as its own nationals.
“Discriminatory trade practices, such as the ones challenged today, encourage the move of investments away from the EU, impacting the EU’s competitiveness in the sector and in general undermine efforts to address the climate crisis”, the European Commission explained.
It also indicated that it had raised the issue with the UK on several occasions, to no avail. The WTO consultation is the first step in the dispute settlement process. The two parties have 60 days to find a solution. If no solution is found, the EU may call for the opening of a dispute settlement body. (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)