Meeting with the Euroepan fertilisers industry
Online, 15 June 2021
Meeting conclusions
Participants
Visitors’ delegation:
Fertilisers Europe) and
Borealis
Yara
Grupa Azoty
Fertiberia
OCI Nitrogen
Azomures
Nitrogenmuvek
Kavala Fertilisers
Fertilisers Europe
COM:
x
First EVP Timmermans
x
M. Antoine Colombani, CAB Member.
Objective of
For the industry: to convince the First EVP that free allowances of CO2
the meeting
emissions under the Emissions Trading System shall remain in parallel
to the future Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism.
For the First Vice President: to explain the state of play regarding the
preparation of the proposal of CBAM, and stress that free allowances
and CBAM cannot be combined in the long term.
Issues raised
& follow-up
On the arguments used by the visitors
x Fertilisers industries suffer of a deficit of free allowances.
x Fertilisers industries can contribute to the Hydrogen strategy and de-
carbonisation through the production of green ammonia.
x If free CO2 allowances are not allowed for industries covered by the
CBAM, the additional costs will be transferred to the end-user, i.e
farmers. Even a 50% reduction of free allowances will not be
acceptable. The competitiveness of the EU fertilisers industry (which
exports significantly) would be endangered.
x CBAM should cover also finished fertilisers, and especially all N-
Fertilisers, as well as all NH3 products. All the value chain should be
covered.
x The fertilisers industry need stability and predictability. If there is no
right balance between free allowances and CBAM, investments will
slow down.
x The fertilisers industry needs to be supported to manage its green
transition.
x European countries lack infrastructure regarding green energy,
which will add on the challenge for the industry to become greener.
On the answers given by First EVP Timmermans
x The Commission services are still designing the CBAM.
x The fertilisers industry is a good candidate to be covered by the
CBAM.
x There will be no “test sectors”, nor volunteer sectors. The
Commission will make a proposal of sectors to be covered.
x In the long term, a combination of free allowances of CO2 emissions
and CBAM will not work, as it would not be WTO-compatible.
x There will be a gradual phasing out of the free allowances and a
gradual phase-in of the CBAM.
x The production of “green” hydrogen by the fertilisers industry is a
tremendous opportunity.
x In our farm-to-fork strategy, we call for farmers to be much more
precise when using fertilisers. We must help farmers to use less
fertilisers.
x The National Recovery and Resilience Plans will help improve
infrastructure, and support the green transition. That can help
industry.
x The adoption of the CBAM proposal by the College is planned for 14
July. The discussions with the co-legislators will then start.
x
Note taker
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