European Green Deal is an officially approved strategy of the European Union aimed at achieving zero levels of greenhouse gas emissions by EU countries by 2050. Adopted in December 2019. In December 2020, a number of amendments were made.
It provides for the decarbonisation of the economy, ie the transition of industry, energy and transport in the EU to technologies that eliminate greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere – in excess of their natural absorption by plants.
In metallurgy, steel smelting is the abandonment of coal used in blast furnaces and converters. It is planned to replace traditional production technologies with electric arc smelting of steel, as well as through the use of hydrogen instead of coal in the blast furnace and converter process.
In the transport sector, it is envisaged to abandon internal combustion engines in road and rail transport in favor of electric motors and hydrogen fuel engines.
In the energy sector, the achievement of carbon neutrality should ensure the abandonment of electricity generation at coal-fired power plants and the emphasis on obtaining it from renewable sources, mainly wind and solar power plants.
Energy modernization of the housing stock is also envisaged to reduce energy consumption for heating and bring the waste recycling rate to 100% – in order to reuse plastic packaging, food foil and tin, glass containers.
One of the main tools for implementing the strategy will be the planned introduction of the so-called “Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)” from 2023. Its effect will extend to imports into the EU of products made using “dirty” technologies.
The amount of carbon tax is expected to be tied to the value of EU Emissions Trading System quotas. According to experts, payments by Ukrainian companies for exports to the EU could increase by € 566.3 million a year after the introduction of CBAM.
Achieving the goals of Green Deal requires an investment of at least € 260 billion per year for the entire period of the initiative.