19.02.2024
Source: Energy & Management Powernews
Brussels has approved the German instrument of "climate protection contracts". These are tenders for up to 4 billion euros in subsidies to decarbonize industrial sectors.
The Federal Ministry of Economics has announced that it will now launch the first call for funding following the approval of the climate protection contracts by Brussels. The climate protection agreements would enable companies in Germany to better offset and secure the costs of the transformation and switch to a carbon-free economy. There had already been a great response from the business community during the preparations last year. "Completely new development and innovation opportunities are now opening up - especially for sectors with high energy consumption," said Federal Minister for Economic Affairs Robert Habeck (Greens).
Energy-intensive companies could now use new technologies and switch to climate-friendly energy. This would give them a pioneering role both nationally and internationally on the path to climate neutrality. The new process ensures sustainable value creation with pioneering, climate-friendly technologies and sustainable jobs in Germany. It will also improve the development of the hydrogen infrastructure.
According to the information provided, climate protection contracts are intended to initiate modern, climate-friendly production processes in the energy-intensive industrial sectors, for example in the paper, glass, steel and chemical industries. To this end, climate protection agreements offset the additional costs compared to conventional processes in areas where climate-friendly production processes cannot currently be operated competitively - for a period of 15 years. This would directly avoid large quantities of greenhouse gases. Overall, emissions of 350 million tons of CO2 should be reduced over the term of the funding programme by 2045.
Above all, the climate protection contracts should initiate the urgently needed market transformation: They set an incentive for the necessary new technologies and the infrastructure required for this to be developed and built in Germany now, such as production facilities and pipelines for hydrogen. Know-how in the financing, construction and operation of climate-friendly plants as well as markets for climate-friendly end products, i.e. green lead markets, would also be developed in this way.
The climate protection contracts are to have a volume of 4 billion euros. Part of this will come from an EU pot. The target group are companies that are subject to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, in which actors must provide proof of greenhouse gas emission rights (EUA) - i.e. companies from the chemical, metal, glass or paper industries, for example, the Brussels authority announced.
In order to receive money, companies must apply for a tender. Climate protection contracts are to be awarded for 15 years. The state helps companies to shoulder the initially high extra costs of switching to more climate-friendly technologies, but receives money back if these pay off later. According to the EU Commission, the actual costs for the state could therefore be significantly lower than the 4 billion euros.
Authors: Eva-Maria Vochazer and DPA
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