Biznes Fakty
Poland in inglorious company. It has not presented a new energy and climate plan to Brussels
Poland has entered the second phase of the infringement procedure initiated by the European Commission due to the non-submission of an updated energy and climate plan to Brussels. Should our government neglect to address this within the next two months, the Commission may escalate the issue to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU).
To date, the Commission has received 22 final plans. Besides Poland, the EC has also urged Belgium, Estonia, Croatia, and Slovakia to present their finalized updated national energy and climate plans. The deadline for these submissions is set for 30 June 2024.
In these plans, the Member States articulate their strategies for achieving the EU’s climate objectives. These documents were originally submitted in 2019, outlining the policy frameworks for the current decade. Nevertheless, in light of the European Green Deal and the „Fit for 55” initiative, which increased the greenhouse gas reduction target for 2030 (to 55% relative to 1990 levels), nations are required to revise their commitments.
Two months to respond to the European Commission
Poland and the other countries urged to catch up have two months to respond to the EC. Failing to do so may lead the Commission to refer the matters to the Court of Justice of the EU.
The Ministry of Climate is tasked with preparing the revised Polish plan, and following the addition of a draft environmental impact assessment, it has extended public consultations until the end of February this year.
In January, Deputy Minister of Climate and Environment Urszula Zielińska indicated that by the end of February, the plan would be submitted to the government committee for European affairs, among others.
The government is set to choose between a so-called basic or ambitious scenario. Once the governmental process is finalized, the document is expected to be forwarded to Brussels no later than June 2025.
This is not the first occurrence of this nature.
The EC previously initiated infringement proceedings against Poland for not meeting the deadline to submit a draft updated plan at the transition between 2023 and 2024.
After the draft was submitted, the EC concluded the proceedings, but in its evaluation of the draft Polish plan, it requested Polish authorities to enhance the decarbonization targets for 2030.
Read also: A handful of countries have fulfilled their duty. Poland in the inglorious group >>>
European Union climate policy
The consensus to reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030 was reached during the EU summit in Brussels at the end of 2020. Consequently, in July 2021, the European Commission introduced the Fit for 55 legislative package. At the end of April 2023, the Council of the European Union adopted five cornerstone pieces of legislation included in it.
Fit for 55 comprises a series of climate and energy regulations designed to amend or update EU directives. It is part of the European Green Deal, presented in late 2019, which aspires to „transform the EU into a modern, resource-efficient, and competitive economy,” as stated on the European Commission’s website. An integral aspect of the Green Deal is achieving zero emissions, which Fit for 55 aims to support.
Read also: The EU is to be climate neutral by 2050. We explain what the Fit for 55 package entails >>>
