Because Italy snorts against European gas rules
Gas is one of the "sustainable" sources present in the European taxonomy, but under certain conditions. For Italy, the limits set by Brussels are too stringent and threaten the planned projects. All the details
Last week the Italian government sent a protest document to the European Commission against the requirements for gas power plants in the draft of the “taxonomy for sustainable finance”. This is the set of rules defined by Brussels to direct investment flows towards destinations with a positive environmental impact.
WHAT THE GAS TAXONOMY SAYS
In the draft taxonomy, some nuclear energy and natural gas projects are classified as "sustainable", and therefore able to access certain funding.
As regards gas, in particular, only those plants that will produce emissions of less than 270 grams of CO2 equivalent per kilowatt hour, and 100 grams from 2030, can be called “green”; which will serve to replace plants fueled with more polluting fossil fuels (coal, for example); which will receive building permits before 31 December 2030 and will have a transition plan to low-carbon gases by the end of 2035.
THE ROLE OF GAS IN THE ENERGY TRANSITION
Natural gas is a fossil fuel and as such releases greenhouse gases. But it will still be useful for the energy transition process – at least in the short-medium term – because it will allow stability to be given to an electricity network that is increasingly dominated by intermittent renewable sources.
Wind and solar power, in fact, do not produce energy constantly but depend on the weather conditions. The problem is mitigated by the batteries, which allow to store the excess energy generated in certain periods to use it in seconds. They do not solve it, however: on a large scale, in fact, battery systems cost too much and are impractical.
Hence the need for sources that "accompany" renewables: some countries are insisting on gas, others on nuclear power.
THE SITUATION IN ITALY
In Italy there are forty-eight gas power plant projects : they have a total capacity of 20 thousand megawatts and will require investments of around 10 billion euros. Among the most important are those of Brindisi Sud Cerano, La Spezia, Civitavecchia and Monfalcone. The problem is that, given their characteristics and their emission levels, they may not fall within the European taxonomy and therefore will not be able to access “green” funding.
THE PROTEST OF ITALY
In the document that Italy sent to the European Commission, therefore, there is a protest against the maximum threshold of 100 grams of CO2 emissions per KWh, which is considered too stringent.
Rome proposes to raise it to 340 grams, or – according to Radiocor's reconstruction – asks for the maintenance of an annual average of 750 kilos of CO2 per kWh calculated over a period of twenty years (in the Brussels draft the value of 550 kilos).
POSITIONS IN EUROPE
However, Italy is not the only member of the European Union to be dissatisfied with the taxonomy. Germany, for example, likes the rules for natural gas but is against the inclusion of nuclear energy as a sustainable source, considering it dangerous and expensive. Its line is shared by Austria and Luxembourg.
In favor of nuclear power, on the other hand, are France (which derives about 70% of its electricity from it), Finland and the Czech Republic.
Given the many discontent and conflicts, it is likely that the European Commission will delay the publication of the final version of the taxonomy, which would postpone after January. Then the discussion would move to the European Parliament and the Council: they will have four months (plus another two overtime) to evaluate the text and possibly propose changes. It is possible that the taxonomy will be rejected by the Council, but 72% of the member states would need to vote against, reports Radiocor .
For approval by the European Parliament, on the other hand, a majority is needed: at least 353 out of 705 deputies. Among the parties that have already declared themselves opposed to the taxonomy are the European Socialist Party (PSE), the European Left and the Green Party.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/energia/italia-gas-naturale-tassonomia-commissione-europea/ on Mon, 24 Jan 2022 14:55:18 +0000.