Investment plan: more money and clarity needed

Press Release

The European power sector faces a huge investment challenge over the coming decades to help deliver on the EU energy and climate ambitions. Today, the European Commission published a proposal for the Sustainable Investment Plan and a Just Transition Mechanism.

On this occasion Kristian Ruby, Secretary General of Eurelectric said:

“The proposal on an investment plan for the Green deal is a good first step even if it only will cover a small part of the overall investment needs.”

He added:

“It is also positive to see that the Commission explicitly prioritises the funding of just transition, but further clarity is needed on focus and funding criteria.”

Eurelectric welcomes the scope of the proposal, and the attention given to coal and carbon intensive regions.

Eurelectric particularly welcomes the focus on the reskilling and upskilling of the workforce and the inclusion of investments in the deployment of technologies for clean energy.

Clarification needed

As the discussions evolve, Eurelectric is looking for clarification on a number of points:

  • Funding provenance and target. The current proposal does not indicate the amounts allocated to each sector.
  • The timeline and decision making process. The general adoption process for a regulation is around two years, which leaves the investment uncertainty pending for that period. To that, another time-consuming factor could be the definition of territorial plans and their rubberstamping by the Commission.
  • Criteria and formula to calculate the intensity of aid.
  • Investments in infrastructure. Currently not specifically included in the proposal, the infrastructure plays a key role in an increasingly decarbonised, digitalised, decentralised and electrified world.