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New Gas for Climate policy paper calls for a binding target for 11% renewable gas by 2030
Today, the Gas for Climate consortium published a policy paper which provides an analysis-based rationale on why an 11% renewable gas target is needed to meet the EU’s climate ambition to cut GHG emissions by 55% in 2030. The policy paper follows last year’s Gas for Climate Gas Decarbonisation Pathways 2020-2050 report, which showed how additional policy measures are needed to scale-up biomethane, green and blue hydrogen which are all needed to meet the EU’s climate targets. This policy paper focuses on biomethane and green hydrogen, acknowledging they require additional incentives compared to the incentives required to scale-up blue hydrogen.
To ensure an accelerated and consistent market ramp-up of green hydrogen and biomethane across the EU, the envisioned 11% target is supported by two binding sub-targets for green hydrogen and biomethane. At least 8% of the gas consumed in the EU by 2030 should be biomethane, and at least 3% should be green hydrogen. The sub-targets reflect that biomethane is commercially available today and scalable in a sustainable manner, while green hydrogen should ramp up during the 2020s too. The 3% green hydrogen target aligns with the European Commission target for at least 40GW of electrolyser capacity in the EU. A binding target for renewable gas will help to reduce production costs of biomethane and green hydrogen during the 2020s, while in the long-term help to achieve the European decarbonisation targets at the lowest societal costs.
Gas for Climate foresees that an EU-wide target of renewable gas would be translated into differentiated national targets.
