WindEurope warned of the risk of investment in renewable energies from Europe to the United States, due to the emergency plan of the European Union (EU) to respond to the crisis caused by energy prices.
“Europe needs big investments in renewable energies. Everyone agrees that this is the way out of the crisis. But as it stands, the emergency regulation [da UE] will suspend many investments in renewable energies”, defended the association that promotes the use of wind energy in Europe, based in Brussels, in a statement published on its website.
The association noted that the regulation, “as it stands now,” “does not prevent national governments from adopting additional taxes and taking uncoordinated action on different types of energy production.”
According to WindEurope, some EU member states are already planning additional measureswhich include “taxes on the total income of electricity producers instead of on profits”.
“This will disrupt investments in renewable energy. Investors will simply go elsewhere. For the United States of America, for example, where the Inflation Reduction Act has large tax credits for renewable energy investments,” the wind farm association noted.
Thus, he argued, governments should bear in mind that “deviating from the EU limit or imposing additional taxes on electricity producers will disrupt investments in renewable energy and make it much more difficult for Europe to emerge from the energy crisis.”
WindEurope has more than 400 members, including manufacturers operating in the global wind energy market, component suppliers, research institutes, national wind and renewable energy associations, among other stakeholders.
The regulation on emergency intervention that this Friday received the political support of the 27 EU Member States includes a ceiling on the profits of companies that produce electricity with low costs (renewable), and plans to reduce electricity consumption, voluntary (10% for general demand) and mandatory (5% in peak hours).
Source: Observadora
