Ecolabel for nuclear power and natural gas: Critics fear a "huge gift" for Putin
Created: 07/08/2022 05:32
By: Bettina Menzel
Green label for nuclear power and gas: The EU Parliament voted in favor of such plans on Wednesday.
One critic says it is a "gift" for Putin.
© IMAGO/SteveAllenPhoto / YAY Images
From now on, the European Parliament classifies nuclear power and gas as green.
Apparently, this not only has an impact on European climate policy, but also on the Ukraine war.
Strasbourg - The European Parliament classifies nuclear power and gas as environmentally friendly.
Opponents of the green label for nuclear and gas did not get the necessary majority in the Strasbourg Parliament on Wednesday.
Critics see this as a "huge gift" for Vladimir Putin.
What the EU label could bring to the Russian President.
Nuclear power and gas classified as green: "Putin is rubbing his hands with joy today"
The EU has been planning to phase out Russian gas since the beginning of the Ukraine war, but the member states have not yet set a date for the end of gas imports.
The situation is different with Russian oil and coal, even if Europe has allowed itself a long transition period here.
When the European Parliament voted on the green label for gas and oil, 278 MEPs voted in favour, 328 against and 33 abstained.
An absolute majority of 353 of the 705 MPs would have been required for a blockade.
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The result of the vote was "a setback for climate and environmental protection in Europe," said SPD MEP Joachim Schuster.
Environmental protection organizations such as the WWF accused the EU Commission of "greenwashing".
But the decision not only plays a role for the climate, but also for the Ukraine war, says Ukrainian MP Inna Sovsun.
"Putin is rubbing his hands with joy today," Sovsun told the English newspaper
The Guardian
, adding that the MEPs who voted or abstained to include gas and nuclear power in the green taxonomy gave the Russian president "huge gifts". had.
“Thank you to the courageous 278 MPs who objected.
It wasn't enough, but we won't stop fighting."
However, it is very unlikely that the Member States will still reject the taxonomy.
Although they could object to the Commission by July 11, 20 of the 27 EU countries and thus 65 percent of the total population would have to vote against it.
Protest action against the green EU taxonomy for nuclear energy and natural gas in early January in Frankfurt am Main.
© Tim Wagner / Imago
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Taxonomy regulation: what is it and why does it affect Putin's war?
The taxonomy regulation that has been in force since 2020 has so far included eco-energies such as wind and solar power.
The EU wants to create a kind of European seal of quality for environmentally friendly financial products.
The inclusion of gas and nuclear power thus amounts to an official recommendation for private investment in nuclear and gas projects and has long-term consequences.
Because approvals for new nuclear power plants granted up to 2045 could fall under the Taxonomy Ordinance.
The European Union has aimed to become climate-neutral by 2050, but this requires 350 billion euros per year.
The money for investments in environmentally friendly energy projects should also come from private investors - and could now flow more into nuclear power and gas.
This also has advantages for Russia.
According to research by Greenpeace France, Russian companies from the nuclear, oil and gas sectors were apparently lobbying in the run-up to the EU vote.
These included state-owned companies or companies with ties to the Russian state, such as Gazprom, Lukoil and Rosatom.
The new provision would increase Europe's dependence on Russia's energy, the report said.
The new EU legal act does not contain any risks, but a number of opportunities, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov told the
Energy Intelligence
portal in February, almost as if to prove it.
For Russia, this means more sales of fossil gas, uranium, reactors or other services - such as the sale of hydrogen from gas, as Schulginov suggested.
According to Reuters
, oil and gas account for
around 40 percent of Russian government revenues.
"Europe's energy dependency on Russia gives Putin a powerful geopolitical negotiating tool," the Greenpeace report said.
An analysis of the portal
Energypost
sees a correlation between Russia's oil and gas exports to Europe and Russia's military spending.
So the taxonomy could indirectly subsidize the war against Ukraine.
(bme with material from AFP).
