EU delays 2040 climate target proposal beyond Q1

Europe’s green agenda faces pressure as industries and governments push for relief

A view shows emissions from the smoke stack of the Electricite de France (EDF) coal-fired power plant in Cordemais near Nantes, France, Jan 20, 2022. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe/File Photo

The European Commission has delayed its plan to propose a new EU climate target in the first quarter of this year, pushing back the launch of an expected commitment to cut emissions by 2040, it said on Friday.

Brussels had said last month it would amend the EU's climate law this quarter - a long-planned move that would set a 2040 target to keep countries on track between their 2030 emissions goal, and the bloc's aim for zero net emissions by 2050.

However, the proposal has run into political opposition, with some member states and lawmakers reluctant to back the 90 percent emissions cut, which the Commission has previously indicated should be set as the 2040 target.

The EU's climate targets set out in law how much countries must reduce their net emissions, compared with 1990 levels.

"We can confidently assume that it will not be adopted in Q1," a Commission spokesperson told a regular press briefing on Friday, declining to confirm when the target will be proposed.

The EU - like most countries in the world - has also missed a February deadline to submit a 2035 climate plan to the UN, which the Commission has said should be derived from the EU's 2040 goal.

The EU has vowed not to backtrack on its climate change commitments, despite President Donald Trump scrapping the green goals of the US, the world's biggest economy, and pulling it out of the Paris climate agreement.

Europe is the planet's fastest-warming continent, and has suffered disastrous heatwaves, floods and droughts in recent years that scientists have said were directly linked to human-caused global warming.

But Europe's green agenda is facing increasing pressure from industries and some governments, who say environmental rules are hurting businesses already struggling with high energy prices and weak demand. The EU agreed this month to loosen CO2-cutting rules for carmakers, after pleas from industry.

Some EU officials also note a reluctance to launch political negotiations on the 2040 climate goal ahead of Polish presidential elections in May. Poland currently holds the rotating EU presidency and chairs negotiations among EU countries until July.

Warsaw had initially resisted the EU's 2050 climate target, citing concerns about the cost of the energy transition for the coal-reliant nation.

"I don't see a majority backing 90 percent," one EU diplomat said, referring to EU countries' positions on the 2040 goal.