Big industry wants a climate change law that makes it viable

Companies with large energy consumption want the Climate Change Law to “give viability to the industry”, betting on a “more positive” just transition, which, in addition to closures and reconversions, bets on technological transformation to take advantage of the development opportunity it represents. Among the specific elements it demands, the “fixing by law” of a compensation of 25% of the _CO2 costs passed on to electricity stands out; “as of September 2020 we have six million.”

This was stated by Teresa Rasero, president of the Association of Companies of Large Energy Consumption (AEGE), during her speech this morning at the Commission on Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge of the Congress of Deputies to present the vision of the entity on the Draft Law on climate change and energy transition, in the process of processing.

Rasero recalled the importance of the basic industry represented by AEGE -it is made up of 38 business groups with 80 plants throughout the territory, employs about 180,000 people and invoices about 20,000 million a year-, when it comes to producing basic goods for the entire productive fabric, as is being demonstrated during the pandemic and the need to access essential health products.

Likewise, he stressed the serious problem of the companies of the Association with the cost of energy, which reaches up to 50% of the total: “electricity has fallen in recent months, but in the differential of 20 to 25 euros per MWh in relation to our European competitors”, he said, quantifying that difference in an average of 5 million a year and in 50 million during the useful life of the factories. “There is a risk that the transition will not be overcome by this price differential,” he said.

25% of _CO2 costs by law

Rasero has denounced that the Law “does not speak of competitive supply” and has demanded that it contemplate several support measures authorized by Community legislation, such as allocating part of the collection obtained with CO auctions₂ to compensate for the extra cost that its associates suffer indirectly due to the impact of CO₂ in electricity, which has quantified at 1,240 million during the past year.

In this sense, he recalled that the European Commission authorizes that this compensation amounts to 25% and that the impact report of the Bill speaks of 20%, “but now we have 6 million”. He has requested that this situation change and has demanded that 25% be included in the articles of the future norm

Rasero has also pointed out the need to strengthen the Statute for electro-intensive consumers. In his opinion, the draft presented in February is “insufficient” and “too broad”, since it can benefit companies whose energy costs are 1% or 2% of the total. Therefore, it should “go further” and focus on really electro-intensive companies, reduce the amount of tolls – in the fixed part of the receipt – and eliminate the payment for the development of historical renewables, in line with what happens in other countries.

The president has referred to the extinct interruptibility and has demanded that the industry be allowed to participate in the adjustment services of the electricity system and in the strategic reserve in process.

He has also called for the future Law to promote more hydrogen and renewable gases, which can have important applications in heavy industry, which is very difficult to decarbonise, and has called for the principle of technological neutrality to be applied to minimise the cost of the transition process.

He summarized his speech by calling on his lordships “to regulate so that companies have viability in the country” and demanding a “more positive” text in which the so-called “just transition”, in addition to attending to the closures of power plants and the reconversion of affected areas, also speaks of technological transformation to materialize the “great opportunity” that represents the entire process of ecological transition.

Source: The Economist