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Net-Zero Industry Act: Will the EU defend its industry?
(EurActiv, 9 Jun 2023) The very existence of the European Commission’s Net-Zero Industry Act is to be welcomed, writes Julie Oddou. However, it is also insufficient on budgetary aspects, places too much emphasis on on carbon capture and storage (CCS), and unjustifiably excludes nuclear power, she adds.
Julie Oddou is managing director for European Affairs at the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), a government-funded research organisation focusing on four main areas: low-carbon energies, information technologies, and defence and security.
In August 2022, the United States passed the Inflation Reduction Act, a law designed to accelerate the decarbonisation of its industry, containing numerous protectionist measures and backed by a $370 billion budget.
The IRA acted as an electroshock and pushed the European Commission to react. However, it is only the latest avatar of a deep and long-standing imbalance in the treatment of industry between the European Union and its main competitors: the United States, China and India. This has already led to the loss of the European solar industry and to our extreme dependence on imported semiconductors.
In response to this situation, the European Commission has drafted a regulatory proposal called the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA), which aims at supporting industries that are key to decarbonisation by speeding up administrative procedures, supporting investment in production capacity for low-carbon technologies and introducing regulatory sandboxes.
The very existence of this Act is to be welcomed. It marks the EU’s recognition of the need to act in response to anti-competitive measures that are increasingly threatening its industry.
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EurActiv, 9 Jun 2023: Net-Zero Industry Act: Will the EU defend its industry?
