Following a year-long debate among states about whether investments are actually climate-friendly, the European Union has devised plans to classify some natural gas and nuclear energy projects as “green” investments.
In January, the European Commission is set to propose criteria on whether gas and nuclear projects should be listed in the sustainable category.
This is a list of economic operations and the environmental requirements that must be met in order for them to be labeled as green investments. The approach intends to make really climate-friendly projects more appealing to private money by limiting the “green” designation to those projects that are truly climate-friendly and to prevent “green washing,” greenwashing, or investors exaggerating their environmental credentials. Brussels has also taken steps to extend the system to some EU financing, implying that the criteria may determine whether they can receive public funds
or not.
A proposal would classify nuclear power plant investments as green, provided the project has a strategy, money, and a place for securely disposing of radioactive waste. New nuclear facilities must acquire building licenses before 2045 to be considered green. Natural gas power stations will be considered green if they emit less than 270 grams of CO2 equivalent per kilowatt-hour (kWh).
Gas and nuclear power generating would be classified as “green” since they are “transitional” activities, which are described as activities that are not totally sustainable but have lower emissions and do not lock in polluting assets.
The Commission thinks that natural resources like gas and nuclear power can play a significant role in facilitating the transition to a largely renewable-based future. It is based on scientific advice and current technical advances, as well as varied transition problems between member states.
“Under some scenarios, solutions that do not appear particularly ‘green’ at first glance might make sense to help states with varied energy histories adapt,” a Commission source told Reuters, adding that gas and nuclear investments would be subject to “tight criteria.”
The draught plan will be scrutinized by EU governments and a team of experts, and it may alter before it is released later in January. It might be rejected by a majority of EU nations or the European Parliament once it is published. For more than a year, the strategy has been bogged in government lobbying, and EU members differ on which fuels are actually sustainable. Power plants operating on natural gas produce half the CO2 that coal does. However, gas infrastructure is also linked to methane leaks, a dangerous global warming gas.
Based on the steep emissions cuts experts think are needed to avert devastating climate change, the EU’s advisers suggested that gas plants not be labeled as green investments unless they fulfilled a lower 100g CO2e/kWh emissions limit. Nuclear power emits extremely little CO2, but the European Commission this year sought expert input on whether the fuel could be classified as green due to the possible environmental effect of radioactive waste disposal. The leaked plan on gas and nuclear was criticized by environmentalists and Green EU legislators.
