Europe should not stall on green and clean industrial development but be more flexible on how to achieve climate goals, according to Belgium Prime Minister Alexander De Croo speaking at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos.
Reflecting on the slew of executive orders from US President Donald Trump, reaffirming traditional fossil fuel and LNG development, he said, “As Europeans, we should stick to the goal – so what we have in the Green Deal, we should stick to from a climate and competitive perspective. What we should change is being more open on the ways to acheive it.”
“In a few domains we’ve been way too strict. With hydrogen, we say x% needs to be green hydrogen and x% needs to be this type of hydrogen. I don’t think we should define it – we should say ’that’s the goal of reduction, how are we going to achieve it?’. But please, let’s not add uncertainty.”
Marc Ferracci, French Minister Delegate for Industry, agreed there should be more flexibility on the path to transition and European policy should be more assertive and “less naive”.
“We are faced with the greatest challenge in decades, maybe even centuries, in decarbonising our economies without decreasing competitiveness,” he said. “I think that’s the problem, we have stacked many environmental norms without assessing the capacity of our industry to complete objectives.”
Ester Baiget, CEO of Novonesis, said the green and clean direction should not alter but urged Europe to be “smoother and faster” with permitting and implementing industrial change.
Anna Borg, CEO of Vattenfall, said, “Climate change is not going anywhere. The path for Europe needs to be fuelled by investments in infrastucture and energy,” she said, echoing comments from IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol, in another panel, that amid all the global uncertainties, two certainties are energy security and climate change.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said technology controls have “quadrupled” in recent decades. “Our supply chains are at times weaponised,” she said.
“Clean energy is the mid-term answer as it’s cheap, creates jobs and strengthens our energy independence. Today Europe generates more electricity from wind and solar than from all fossil fuels combined. But we must continue to diversify our energy supplies.”
She said the race is now on, as the world competes for access to raw materials and new technologies, but appealed for cooperation. “It’s in no-one’s interest to break the bonds of the global economy,” she said. “We must pursue a more balanced relationship with China, and entire supply chains stretch across both sides of the Atlantic. The US provides over 50% of our LNG. A lot is at stake for both sides.”
Europe’s capacity to invent and create is under appreciated, she added. “But the world is changing, and so must we. To sustain our growth, we must shift gears.”
She said a new clean energy and low carbon plan will be unveiled in February. “It’s time to complete our energy union so that clean power can run freely across our continent and bring prices down for all Europeans.”
As US President Trump announced it will withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Accord, she said, “The Paris Agreement continues to be the best hope for humanity,” adding that the new Commission team’s first visit will be to India.
Ding Xuexiang, Vice-Premier of the People’s Republic of China, which is targeting carbon neutrality by 2060, said renewable energy now accounts for 35% of its energy generation.
Asked if the world risked being divided into separate systems, he called on stronger global solidarity to narrow down division and reiterated it was a “staunch supporter of multilateralism”, but warned the consequences of a split would be “unimaginable”.
