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Europe's time: How not to waste it?

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It is a historic moment for Europe. That is how the European Commission entitled the list of proposed measures to restore the economy of the European Union estimated at a record amount of 750 billion euros, with 500 billion being allocated free of charge as grants and another 250 billion – as loans. The EU member states should approve the plan of the European Commission in order to «contribute to a better future for a new generation».

According to the head of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, «Efficient approval of the plan will be a clear sign of European unity, our solidarity and common priorities». A significant part of the recovery measures is aimed at implementing the «Green Deal», a phased transition to climate neutrality of the EU countries. About 20 billion euros will be allocated to co-finance the existing InvestEU program aimed at supporting the development of sustainable energy technologies, including carbon capture and storage projects.

One of the most promising projects in this field is currently being implemented in the Netherlands in the Rhine–Meuse delta, which is of crucial importance for European and international shipping. The Smart Delta Resources Consortium has launched a campaign to assess all aspects of the carbon capture and storage systems construction for their subsequent reuse. It is planned that the consortium will be capturing 1 million tons of carbon dioxide per year starting from 2023 with a subsequent increase to 6.5 million tons in 2030, which will reduce the total share of emissions in the region by 30%.

One of the consortium members is the Zeeland refinery (a joint venture of TOTAL and LUKOIL that works with Europe's largest integrated refinery Total Antwerp Refinery). This Dutch plant is one of the industry leaders in climate neutrality. Digital optimization system for the processing of middle distillates (which includes marine fuel that complies with the strict requirements of IMO 2020 that have recently entered into force), as well as the recently upgraded and one of the largest hydrocracking facilities in Europe are installed at the plant.

According to Leonid Fedun, Vice President for Strategic Development of LUKOIL, the company is European and, consequently, feels an obligation to comply with current trends, including climate trends that define the market today.

At the same time, according to Fedun, climate neutrality in Europe will be achieved only by 2065, and in order to achieve it the global harmonization of regulatory approaches of all parties to the Paris Agreement is important.

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The measures proposed by the European Commission to support the economies of member states may become a significant step along this path, as its first stage will be the development and internal coordination of each member state reorganization plans in the energy sector and in the economy field.

Using existing breakthrough projects in the field of climate neutrality as the best industry practices for the entire region may help shorten the time needed to implement support measures as well as become an instrument for a dialogue within supranational organizations and international agreements such as the Paris Climate Agreement.

 

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EU Reporter publishes articles from a variety of outside sources which express a wide range of viewpoints. The positions taken in these articles are not necessarily those of EU Reporter.

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