Dunce cap for five European energy companies. The transition plans of the French Engie, the Italian Enel, the Czech EPH, the Spanish Iberdrola and the Norwegian Statkraft have been criticized by the coalition of associations Beyond Fossil Fuels.
According to an analysis of their documents, they “ do not plan to phase out electricity generation from fossil gas by 2035, as recommended by the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. climate (IPCC) », Details the coalition based in Berlin in a report.
Enel, Engie and EPH in particular “ remain major developers of fossil gas power plants », Adds the document, which draws attention to projects based on the use of hydrogen and biomethane (gas from organic waste). These latter are still “ immature or non-functional on a commercial scale », according to this group representing around sixty European civil organizations, including WWF and Reclaim Finance.
Green hydrogen: struggling, the megaproject of TotalEnergies and Engie largely revised downwards
Engie still relies too much on thermal power plants
The French energy company Engie, for example, certainly plans to double its renewable energy capacities from 42 GW in 2023 to 80 GW in 2030, so that they then represent 58% of its energy mix, and to strengthen its storage capacities. .
But the group plans to still devote, by 2026, between 1 to 2 billion euros in new gas-fired thermal power plants, and 1 billion euros in gas infrastructure, notes the report. And Engie is engaged in contracts for gas from hydraulic fracturing in the United States which run until after 2040, the document also notes.
The CEO of the French group, Catherine MacGregor, herself admitted in March that « ldecarbonization of the molecule (of gas, editor’s note) will take more time ». CThe delay is, however, far from being a surprise. Engie had already announced that it was pushing back its green hydrogen targets by five years. The group is now aiming for 4 gigawatts of electrolysis capacity by 2035, compared to 2030 initially. This postponement is linked to the lack of demand given the high cost of hydrogen produced by water electrolysis and the gap with grey hydrogen is widening as natural gas prices fall on the markets.
For Catherine MacGregor, the boss of Engie, the decarbonization of natural gas will take longer than expected
Catherine MacGregor also mentioned a ” industrial subject “, linked to the lack of reliability of power electrolyzers as well as a ” regulatory aspect “, Referring to ” very demanding regulations to classify green hydrogen », imposed by Brussels, based in particular on the additionality criterion. As for the development of a global market around this tiny molecule, “ it will also be necessary to ensure that the regulation is compatible from one country to another “, also warned the leader. “ The objective of 40 gigawatts (of electrolysis capacity, editor’s note) in 2030, I don’t believe in it. I think it’s very ambitious (…). It’s going to take longer “, said the group’s general director, when asked about the roadmap established by the industrial association, Hydrogen Europe, in 2020.
Corporate policies with global consequences
Except that these difficulties inherent to these companies will have global consequences. Taken together, the transition plans of EPH, Enel and Engie “ do not allow us to foresee a rapid exit from fossil fuels », Estimates Pierre-Alain Sebrecht, campaign manager at Reclaim Finance, quoted in the press release published this Wednesday.
« Their commitment to develop new gas-fired power plants will lock in future emissions and hamper Europe’s ability to meet its climate targets. “, he adds, emphasizing that “ this also compromises compliance with the carbon neutrality commitments of the actors who support them financially ».
Even if they do not commit to abandoning fossil fuels by 2035, Iberdrola and Statkraft “ show that a coherent transition plan towards a sustainable electricity system (wind, solar, storage and networks) is possible », Also underlines the report.
Banks also singled out by environmental NGOs
Mi-mai, le 15ème rapport « Banking on Climat Chaos », coordinated by several NGOs, including Reclaim Finance revealed that the 60 largest banks in the world lent or arranged last year 706 billion dollars (-10%) for the benefit of fossil fuels with, in the top three of the most major donors, JP Morgan Chase (41 billion), Mizuho (37 billion) and Bank of America (34 billion). In Europe, the British bank Barclays is at the top of the podium with 24 billion in financing, far ahead of BNP Paribas (12.2 billion), Crédit Agricole (11.7 billion) and Société Générale (8.7 billion). .
Since the Paris agreements of 2015 – which aim to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees – banks have granted nearly $7,000 billion in financing in all forms to fossil fuels. However, for three years, the International Energy Agency has indicated that there can be no new development of oil, gas and coal if the planet is to reach net zero emissions by 2050, in accordance with to the Paris agreement. It is, to a large extent, on this IEA study that NGOs base their argument to demand banks to stop all new financing for the fossil fuel sector.
(With AFP)
