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The European Commission may classify natural gas as green investments.
- The decision is set to be agreed upon this year as the climate change-related section of the taxonomy takes effect next year.
- Central and eastern countries advocate for rules that promote gas investments as they seek to phase out coal-powered generation.
The European Commission has said that the European Union’s rules to classify green investments would likely be altered to allow natural gas. The Commission had earlier published its “sustainable finance taxonomy”, a list of economic activities classified under green investments as the EU looks to promote private investments that will help meet climate targets.
Read also: Germany Set to Increase its Carbon Emissions Target Following Court Ruling.
The commission has delayed deciding on classifying natural gas power plants as green. The EU financial services commissioner Mairead McGuinness noted to lawmakers in the European Parliament that the executive will have to reassess how to accommodate gas, especially as it could help to reduce emissions in certain instances. “Maybe in the situation we have today, we need to find some accommodation, so that if there is no other better option that a member state can use, that gas plays a particular role,” she stated.
The decision is set to be agreed upon this year as the climate change-related section of the taxonomy takes effect next year. Central and eastern countries advocate for rules that promote gas investments as they look to quit coal-powered generation. On the other hand, some western and Nordic states believe that labelling a fossil fuel as green is not credible.
The commission will also review nuclear power as it expects expert reports to help it decide by the end of the year.