As part of "A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net Zero Age" to respond to the US Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) (see our alert), the European Commission (the "Commission") adopted on 9 March 2023 its Temporary Crisis and Transition Framework for State Aid measures to support the economy following the aggression against Ukraine by Russia (the "TCTF").The text amends the Temporary Crisis Framework last amended on 28 October 2022 (see our blog).
These are the three most important things you need to know about the TCTF:
- To avoid that an investment would be located outside the European Economic Area (EEA), EU countries may support investments in the manufacturing of relevant equipment for the transition towards a net-zero economy, such as batteries, solar panels, wind turbines, heat pumps, carbon capture usage and storage (CCUS), as well as their key components and critical raw materials necessary for their production.They may even grant aid matching foreign subsidies to support those investments, provided that they are located in the poorer areas of the EU.
- EU countries' possibilities to grant aid for accelerating the rollout of renewable energy are extended to any renewable technologies, including hydropower, and no longer require a bidding process to select the aided projects that are considered as less mature.
- The TCTF is not a subsidy program, and it is up to EU Member States to provide public funding.
Aid to cover investment costs for the production of relevant equipment for the transition towards a net-zero economy
Under general State aid rules, aid facilitating industrial production, cannot, in principle, be granted, except for initial investments in assisted areas (i.e.低人口密度或异常穷困区)和条件特殊与TCTF合作,欧盟成员国可提供援助投资生产相关设备,以向净零经济过渡(例如:电池板、太阳能板、风轮机、热泵、电解器、CCUS、关键组件和生产这类设备的关键原材料)允许提供以下帮助:
- 'ati-土地、建筑、工厂、机器、专利权),上限为1.5亿欧元允许上层向辅助区投资(20-35%最大2-3.5亿欧元取决于投资是在低人口密度区还是在异常贫困区进行)以赋税优待、贷款或担保形式援助(+5%)或小公司(+20%)和中型公司(+10%)。这种援助必须是非歧视性程序的一部分,可适用于满足条件的任何申请者。 Exceptively,“匹配”援助单题,除预定义程序外,为欧经区以外的等值投资提供“匹配”补贴,欧经区外包括欧盟成员国、挪威、列支敦士登和冰岛援助量不能超出资金缺口,即引导公司查找EEA投资所必备量投资必须完全定位于受助区或部分受助区,但涉及几个欧经区国家受益人必须承诺从环境排放角度使用最新生产技术并显示援助不产生反相联效果,例如因为项目可能位于欧经区较穷区。
没有援助不会在欧经区投资的风险必须证明以及在欧经区内投资不重新定位申请援助程序者还必须提供详细信息,特别是投资信息,包括投资对相关领域创造工作机会、研发活动等预期积极效果
Aid支付运营或投资成本以加速推广可再生能源
TTF扩展至2025年12月31日成员国可设计适用于满足条件的任何公司的国家援助方案,支持用可再生能源发电并存储能源可再生能源定义见s/eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02018L2001-2020607qid=16788953119新建或重放安装必须在36个月内完成并运行,离岸风技术除外。
面向公司自身目的)对太阳能光电电、风电发电投资的援助原则上必须通过竞价招标过程确定。这一过程应导致出价者请求最低支持以赢得补贴合同在所有其他情况下,援助也可以由授权机构行政确定。In any event, overcompensation must be avoided, and the aid amount may not exceed the total investment costs or, if set administratively, 45% of those costs.
Aid for renewable energy output could also be granted in the form of a two-way contract for difference of maximum 20 years, whereby the power producer is guaranteed a minimum remuneration for the electricity produced irrespective of market conditions (such as for instance negative electricity prices due to excessive renewable electricity supplies compared to demand) and the retrocession of revenues to the State where prices exceed a certain limit.
Similarly to investment aid, the amount of aid to support the production of electricity from solar photovoltaic, wind and hydropower is in principle determined after a competitive bidding process (except for small installations).In other cases, the strike price, which corresponds to the minimum remuneration, may be set administratively by the energy regulator to cover the net costs of the producers.
Impact on stakeholders in the Net-Zero Industry
Contrary to other jurisdictions, the TCTF does not create any overarching subsidy program, and each individual EU Member State remains competent to introduce State aid programs.
The TCTF is part of a larger initiative, and its use by EU countries may be incentivized by coming legislation, such as the Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) proposed by the Commission on 16 March 2023.NZIA建议旨在实现气候和能源依赖目标测试设定了欧盟部署需求40%的基准,绿色过渡由位于欧盟的战略净零技术制造能力覆盖。
为能源多样化,欧盟还期望到2030年进口能源,如1,000万吨可再生氢Contrary to aid for relevant equipment for the transition towards a net-zero economy, and similarly to the State aid rules that are generally applicable, aid to accelerate the rollout of renewable energy and energy storage may also be granted for imports in the EU (for a precedent see our alert).
Companies manufacturing equipment for the transition towards a net-zero economy or investing in the production of energy from renewable sources or in energy storage may consider approaching EU Member States to seek the most adequate public funding for their investments or export projects.Covington可帮助你探索欧盟向净零经济过渡最新动态的复杂性和机遇。
援救市场失效阻碍实现足够程度的环境保护或高效内部能源市场援助的适当性,即目标是否无法通过替代措施实现(充分)基于市场工具,如排放交易机制或偏差性小辅助工具(例如可偿还预付直接授标援助的相称性,即援助是否限为最小需求, 即实现援助量度目标所需净额外成本透明性援助,即或公诸于世(v) the avoidance of undue negative effects of the aid on competition and trade, considering the distortive effects on competitors that likewise operate on an environmentally-friendly basis, and it will (vi) weigh up the positive and negative effects of the aid, paying attention to the sustainability of the activity and in particular that it ‘does no significant harm' to environmental objectives.
These assessment criteria are further elaborated for each specific category of aid.
Categories of aid that can be assessed under the CEEAG
Most of the categories of environmental protection and energy measures falling in the scope of the previous EEAG are covered by the CEEAG in a much larger fashion.These categories relate to support:
- for the reduction and removal of greenhouse gas emissions including through support for renewable energy and energy efficiency;
- for the improvement of the energy and environmental performance of buildings;
- for resource efficiency in respect of which the CEEAG also cover the transition to a circular economy, beyond the mere waste management foreseen in the EEAG;
- reductions in taxes or parafiscal levies where these taxes or levies aim at sanctioning environmentally harmful behaviour but create such a competitive disadvantage that it would not have been feasible to introduce them in the first place without having foreseen reductions for certain companies;
- for district heating and cooling, including highly-efficient cogeneration;
- for the security of electricity supply, extending to storage or demand response, interconnection, as well as network congestion measures, the possibilities initially offered under the EEAG to support generation adequacy;
- reductions for energy-intensive users from electricity levies.前EEAG下,有可能削减旨在为可再生能源支持筹资的收费。With the CEEAG, possible reduction can apply to levies aimed at the broader goal of funding decarbonisation;
- for studies or consultancy services on matters relating to climate, environmental protection and energy, whereas the EEAG only covered environmental studies;
- for the remediation of environmental damage, which constitutes a larger possibility than the aid for the remediation of contaminated sites under the EEAG.
The CEEAG further extends the list of measures that can be aided to support:
- for clean mobility:
- for the acquisition and leasing of clean vehicles (used for air, road, rail, inland waterway and maritime transport) and clean mobile service equipment and for the retrofitting of vehicles and mobile service equipment;
- for the deployment of recharging or refuelling infrastructure for clean vehicles;
- for the prevention or the reduction of pollution other than from greenhouse gases;
- for the rehabilitation of natural habitats and ecosystems, the protection or restoration of biodiversity and the implementation of nature-based solutions for climate change adaptation and mitigation;
- reductions in taxes or parafiscal levies, to encourage undertakings to change or adapt their behaviour by engaging in more environmentally-friendly activities;
- for the closure of power plants using coal, peat or oil shale and of mining operations relating to coal, peat or oil shale extraction.
Whereas previously investment aid for large airports (more than 5 million passengers per year) could only be authorised in exceptional circumstances, such as relocation of an existing airport, aid for large airports would now be authorised also where the purpose of the aid is to improve environmental protection.
Nuclear energy remains outside the scope of the CEEAG, because it relates to limited but very large projects, subject to the EURATOM Treaty.核电援助直接依据条约条款评估 。
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