European climate law adopted: Regulation (EU) 2021/1119 signed on 30 June

The European climate law, i.e. Regulation (EU) 2021/1119, was signed on 30 June 2021, after adoption by the European Parliament and the Council. It enshrines in binding law the target of EU climate neutrality by 2050 and of reducing net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared with 1990. The regulation will enter into force on the twentieth day after publication in the Official Journal of the EU and is to be the basis of the "Fit for 55" package, which the Commission announced for 14 July 2021.

What the act contains

The regulation is a framework act. It does not impose obligations on businesses, but regulates the actions of the EU institutions and Member States. The key elements:

• climate neutrality by 2050 on the scale of the whole Union, with an aim of negative emissions after that date;
• 2030 target – at least a 55% net emissions reduction; contribution of removals limited to 225 Mt CO₂e;
• 2040 target – the Commission will propose it after the global stocktake of implementation of the Paris Agreement;
• European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change – an independent body assessing the consistency of measures with the targets;
• progress assessment and recommendations for Member States if their actions are not consistent with the targets;
• adaptation – an obligation to ensure progress in adapting to climate change.

Significance for biogas and waste

The climate law does not specify technologies, but sets a framework within which new rules for energy, agriculture and waste must be consistent with the 55% target. For biogas and biomethane, the most important consequences are the review of the Renewable Energy Directive (announced for July 2021), higher renewable targets in heating and transport, and the review of the ETS. For sectors outside the ETS – including agriculture and waste – it means tighter reduction obligations for Member States.

Poland

For Poland, whose energy mix in 2021 still relied largely on coal, the key question remains how the 2030 target will be translated into national burdens. Specific commitments will emerge only from the negotiations on the legislative package that the Commission announced for July 2021, and the government stressed the need for financial support mechanisms for the transition.

What next

The Commission announced for 14 July 2021 the presentation of a package of proposals, including a review of the ETS, the Renewable Energy Directive, energy efficiency, the sharing of reduction efforts and new instruments such as the border price adjustment mechanism. For the industry this meant the start of intensive legislative work.

What the regulation does not do

The regulation does not set targets for individual countries or sectors. Nor does it specify which technologies are to be preferred. That is a task for subsequent legal acts: sectoral directives and regulations and decisions on the sharing of reduction efforts. For biogas and biomethane investors, therefore, the key question remains how exactly the RES targets in heating, transport and industry will be written.