Belgian government not enthusiastic about REPowerEU plan

The Belgian federal government is not enthusiastic about the REPowerEU-plan of the European Commission, which should ensure that the member states get rid of Russian fossil fuels faster. According to State Secretary for Relance Thomas Dermine (PS), the financial resources are not fairly distributed.

Last Wednesday, the European Commission presented its REPowerEU-plan: less consumption, other importing countries and more green energy. The executive board of the EU allocates 300 billion euros for the plan, which should ensure that Europe is no longer dependent on Russian fossil fuels.

Corona Recovery Fund

REPowerEU is linked to the Corona Recovery Fund agreed in the summer of 2020. Member States are expected to update their existing recovery plans to take advantage of the new funds. This means clarifying how they intend to dispose of Russian energy resources earlier than now.

The money for this plan comes from the Corona Recovery Fund, which still has 225 billion euro in cheap loans. In addition, the Commission is shifting more than 34 billion euro from the Cohesion Fund and the Agricultural Fund and wants to sell 20 billion euro in extra European emission allowances. With those emission rights, companies have to pay a price for every ton of CO2 or equivalent they emit.

For Belgium, the planned financial resources are a stumbling block.

"First, the regions risk losing cohesion and agricultural funds as a result of the shift. Second, loans are not interesting because they increase our debt, while it is the same Commission that is asking Belgium to review its debt trajectory. And thirdly, more emission rights simply mean more emissions and lower emission prices," Dermine explained to Knack, who stressed that he fully supports the REPowerEU target.

Belgium also disagrees with the national allocation key that the Commission wants to use for the 20 billion euro in new funds. That is the same as the Corona Recovery Fund and is based on the economic consequences of the pandemic with reference year 2021 as a starting point.

"That is not relevant to REPowerEU. Much better would be to look at the energy dependence of the member states. That way, Belgium would get more than 500 million euro instead of the planned 270 million euro. The proposed method of calculation is not acceptable to us," Dermine concludes.

On Monday, the European heads of state and government will meet at a special summit in Brussels, where the REPowerEU proposal will be further discussed.

(AHU)

© BELGA PHOTO ANTHONY DEHEZ - State Secretary for Relance Thomas Dermine