Baggrund og Problem
The affected EU-Regulation
The legislative acts of the Fit for 55 package. It is to be identified which files might require special attention, but the following highlighted areas require key focus.
The Energy Efficiency Directive and the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD). One of the reasons for this focus is that in some Member States even the current version of the EPBD is yet to be implemented fully – let alone the ongoing revision of the directive. Moreover, consistency must be ensured in the national implementation between the EPBD and the taxonomy criteria for buildings.
Furthermore, there has been an important expansion of the scope of the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to also cover shipping, buildings, and road transportation. Including new and global sectors into the existing ETS will require careful crafting of legislative acts implementing the ETS. This goes with respect to the governance of the allowances as well as the monitoring to avoid loopholes.
In parallel, the EU will have to implement the new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which will add a de facto tariff to certain products imported from third countries (unless those countries have sufficiently ambitious climate legislation in place). The implementation of this new mechanism will be crucial to its success – both as an encouragement to other jurisdictions to enact climate legislation but also to prevent carbon leakage from Europe. The implementation on the ground will require coherent effort across Member States.
The legislation supporting the uptake of clean maritime fuels (FuelEU Maritime) will be central for EU shipping. Availability of new, green fuels must be monitored, not only in the EU but globally. Global certification standards of fuel production will be a cornerstone in making reliable data for the fuels purchased. Complying with the obligations requires that an appropriate energy infrastructure is in place (AFIR).
The affected Danish regulation
Danish legislation that transposes the directives of the Fit for 55 package or Danish legislation that supports the implementation of other aspects of Fit for 55.
Affected businesses
The rules in the Fit for 55 legislative acts contain both challenges and opportunities for businesses. This ranges from producers of wind turbines who benefit from higher renewables targets and easier permitting over the transportation sector to providers of energy efficiency solutions that help Member States and energy consuming companies bring down their energy bills and emissions. As such, energy intensive companies and sectors are also affected.
Furthermore, all industries and consumers stand to gain from the lower prices of electricity that the scaling up of renewables across Europe will foster. The higher capacity of renewables, the higher the benefits from lower energy bills across all of society.
Reasoning behind the recommendation
Danish companies are ready and willing to provide many of the concrete solutions and technical knowhow that are necessary to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. The EU’s climate, energy, environmental and transport legislation are key enabling frameworks for these solutions to be rolled out at scale.
However, with existing EU climate legislation, companies have experienced delayed, inefficient, or lacking implementation of EU law at the national and regional level. In other cases, it is the introduction of heterogenous national legislation or outright barriers to the Single Market for goods, services, and persons, that create hindrances for the fulfilment of climate and environmental ambitions.
As such, we identify a need to make sure that hard-won compromises in the negotiation rooms of Brussels do not get diluted or misinterpreted when they are translated into action. Given the acute climate crisis, we cannot afford to wait for proper implementation of EU legislation.
Expected consequences for industry and commerce
Proper implementation of the Fit for 55 legislative acts should lead to long-term benefits for European industry and commerce. These benefits will take the form of higher security of supply of energy (as compared to Europe’s chronic dependency on foreign fossil fuel imports), lower electricity bills lower electricity bills as well as lower overall energy use through higher energy efficiency. These benefits will heighten the competitiveness of the European industry.
However, it must also be clear that proper implementation of the Fit for 55 package will entail costs for many companies in the short term. This would be the case for companies that need to renovate their buildings or install more efficient heating systems. Emission trading will force shipping companies to invest in clean technologies, but the EU ETS for maritime will also help drive investment in renewable energy as well as in the supply networks needed for the alternative maritime fuels necessary to make the transition.
Economic consequences
As per above, the short-term costs of the green transition entail both private and public investment and expenditure. This is for instance clear regarding the ambition in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive to ensure e.g., a fully decarbonized building stock, higher energy efficiency and better air quality. As with the private sector, the Member States, regions, and municipalities stand to gain in the long term from such investments.
In the medium- to long term there will be positive economic consequences from the scaling up of renewable energy. The higher capacity of renewables will lower energy prices across the EU and thereby heighten the competitiveness of Europe.
Current Danish efforts
Denmark has generally been pushing for a high level of ambition of the Fit for 55 package.
Anbefaling
The Commission should by default use all its available enforcement tools, such as reasoned opinions and infringement procedures, to ensure proper implementation of the Fit for 55 legislative package.
However, this default toolbox should be supplemented by further instruments and platforms. One concrete idea is to draw upon the experience of the Single Market Enforcement Taskforce and to establish a Fit for 55 Enforcement Taskforce. In such a forum, the European Commission and the Member States – with active involvement of civil society (industry, trade unions and NGOs) as well as regions and municipalities – can discuss potential implementation/enforcement gaps and/or national barriers to Fit for 55 legislation in an informal setting where solutions can be found through collaboration and sharing of best practices.
Another benefit of this implementation and enforcement focus would be to allow stronger collaboration amongst actors that might otherwise focus on individual elements of the Fit for 55 package rather than having a more cohesive focus. By linking the individual acts (and the implementation thereof), it will be easier to reap the potential synergies. One example is the use of renewables in the Renewable Energy Directive and in the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive.
Although the question of implementation is in the hands of Member States, the European Commission can facilitate the sharing of good approaches as well as shedding light on how it is possible to implement the Fit for 55 legislation in the most (cost-) efficient way possible. In this regard, even “soft” initiatives that make sure that Fit for 55 lives on in the consciousness of both policymakers, companies and citizens can be important. One example that could serve as inspiration is the Commission’s “Connecting Europe Express” initiative that highlighted both the possibilities and obstacles for rail travel within Europe. A similar tour across Member States could be a good platform for both public authorities and member companies to share their best practices and concrete solutions with which to make Fit for 55 a success.
Regeringens svar
Regeringen tiltræder delvist Regelforums anbefaling. Regeringen vil arbejde for, at Fit for 55 bliver implementeret bedst muligt og til tiden. Regeringen arbejder dog ikke for én bestemt løsning, som f.eks. en Implementation Task Force, men vil gøre brug af eksisterende EU-fora, der er allerede oprettet mhp. at sikre en rettidig og korrekt implementering af ”Fit for 55”-pakken på tværs af EU.
Det er vigtigt for regeringen at sikre rettidig, god og ensartet implementering af Fit for 55-pakken, så ambitioner og målsætninger oversættes til konkret handling i national lovgivning. Dog vurderes det, at en taskforce ikke er nødvendig, da implementeringsarbejdet med dele af Fit for 55-pakken er langt fremskredent.
En række af retsakterne i Fit for 55-pakken, fx AFIR, er forordninger. Forordninger har direkte retsvirkning i alle EU-lande, så snart de træder i kraft, uden at de skal omsættes i national ret. De øvrige retsakter i Fit for 55-pakken, der er vedtaget i form af direktiver, er under implementering. Dette gælder eksempelvis den reviderede EU ETS, hvor der er stillet en række lovforslag i løbet af efteråret mhp. implementering i national lov. For øvrige vedtagne forslag er arbejdet med at omsætte direktiverne til national lovgivning i fuld gang, fx energieffektivitetsdirektivet.
Der henvises desuden til, at Kommissionen som traktaternes vogter har til opgave at overvåge medlemsstaternes implementering af EU-lovgivningen. Der findes allerede adskillelige fora, hvor Kommissionen bistår medlemslandene med korrekt implementering af de forskellige Fit for 55-forslag. Der eksisterer blandt andet såkaldte ”Concerted Actions” på en række forslag, herunder fx for direktivet om vedvarende energi, energieffektivitetsdirektivet og bygningsdirektivet. Disse ”Concerted Actions” har bl.a. til formål at øge vidensdeling og udveksling af best practices, tilskynde til dialog mellem medlemsstaterne om fælles tilgange og til at se synergier mellem relaterede direktiver til effektiv implementering.
På den baggrund vil regeringen ikke følge anbefalingens del om etableringen af en task force, men regeringen vil arbejde for at gøre aktivt brug for eksisterende EU-fora for derved at sikre en god og rettidig implementering af Fit for 55-pakken.