The EU Member States once again discussed, on Monday 11 September, the regulation for a Net-Zero Industry, as part of the Working Party on Competitiveness and Growth. They examined a draft compromise submitted by the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council on 5 September, a copy of which EUROPE has received, and focused in particular on the numerous comments sent by most of the Member States on this compromise.
In the end, the 5 September version proposes few changes to the European Commission’s proposal (see EUROPE 13143/1). However, one of the most sensitive issues in the text, the list of technologies that will benefit from the act, is the subject of amendments.
The Spanish Presidency has proposed slightly extending the list of ‘net-zero’ technologies to include all nuclear technologies (provided they have reached level 8 technological maturity, according to the International Energy Agency). The European Commission initially proposed to include only “advanced technologies to produce energy from nuclear processes with minimal waste from the fuel cycle” and “small modular reactors”.
In addition, “biotech climate and energy solutions” and “transformative industrial technologies for decarbonisation” have also been added to the list of ‘net-zero’ technologies.
However, the authors of the compromise do not propose any changes to the list of eight so-called strategic ‘net-zero’ technologies proposed by the Commission.
This part of the text relating to the scope of the technologies concerned is still in square brackets, reflecting the uncertainty that remains among the Member States, as are their comments on the scope of the sectors to be supported.
The other major aspects of the text, such as the section on maximum time limits for granting or refusing to grant a permit for a project, or the section on public procurement, have only been amended marginally. The obligations for public authorities and the eligibility criteria for developers remain the same at this stage.
Work is also continuing in the European Parliament, where members of the Committee on Industry are expected to adopt their position on the regulation on 25 October (see EUROPE 13245/2).
To see the compromise of 5 September: https://aeur.eu/f/8i7 (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)