4 Billion Euros from EU to Decarbonize Germany

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz can breathe a sigh of relief: after lengthy debates, Germany will be able to receive financial aid from the European Union. The European Commission has approved a €4-billion funding program for Germany, partly provided through the Recovery and Resilience Fund, which finances eligible national programs (PNRR). The program is designed to help German companies subject to the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) to “decarbonize” their often outdated and polluting industrial production processes.

The financial backing should also enable German plants to meet targets set by the European Community to reduce climate change and save energy by switching to the widest possible use of renewable energy sources as soon as possible. The program is centered on the strategic goals set by Brussels in the framework of the so-called “European Green Deal.”

The projects to be included in the billion-dollar funding will be divided by industry sectors and involve, among other things, as outlined by the European Commission in a special press release, replacing “traditional processes used in the past to produce steel” with “modern systems powered by environmentally friendly hydrogen.” However, Brussels clarified that the benefit of community financing would go to German companies, especially those active in sectors falling under the ETS system, from chemicals to metals and steel, glass and paper. “To be eligible,” emphasized the European Commission representative, “projects will have to achieve an emission reduction of 60% in 3 years and 90% in 15 years, with German companies using the results of the best technologies available now and in the coming years as a benchmark, and based on ETS parameters.”