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The proposals form part of the Green Deal Industrial Plan and aim to scale up technology and materials for the energy transition.

By Paul A. Davies, Beatrice Lo, JP Sweny, Alexander Buckeridge-Hocking, Michael D. Green, and James Bee

On 16 March 2023, the European Commission (Commission) formally proposed two legislative initiatives and announced the development of a European Hydrogen Bank as part of its program to enhance the EU’s competitiveness in green technologies and support its transition towards net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The Plan aims to “simplify, accelerate and align incentives to preserve the competitiveness and attractiveness of the EU as an investment location for the net-zero industry”[1].

By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee

On 1 February 2023, the European Commission (Commission) presented a proposal for a Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age (the Plan). The Plan forms part of the European Green Deal adopted in 2019, which sets out the EU’s green transition ambitions and climate targets towards reaching net zero by 2050. The Plan sits alongside other Green Deal initiatives, including the “Fit for 55” package of policies (which seek to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% from 1990 levels by 2030), as well as REPowerEU (introduced to reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels and provide clean and affordable energy).

The Plan is designed to support the scaling up of the EU’s net zero manufacturing capacities and installation of sustainable products and energy supplies, whilst also enhancing the competitiveness of Europe’s net zero industry. This Plan is particularly relevant in light of the US Inflation Reduction Act in the US, which aims to mobilise over $360 billion by 2032[2], and recent concerns in relation to energy security and energy prices in the EU.

Three funding opportunity announcements and a finance program provide significant investments to support carbon capture and sequestration.

By Jennifer Roy, Janice Schneider, Joshua Bledsoe, and Brett Frazer

Demand for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) to meet global and national climate goals is on the rise. The International Energy Agency (IEA) 2020 World Energy Outlook suggests that CCS could contribute approximately 15% of cumulative emissions reductions worldwide by 2070.[1] The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) AR6 Working Group III Report further identifies the need for carbon dioxide (CO2) removal technology and to build a carbon management industry to achieve global net zero goals.[2] In view of the growing interest in CCS, and as discussed in this Latham blog post, the Biden Administration has announced ambitious decarbonization goals that prominently feature efforts to deploy CCS in the US.[3]

In September and October 2022, the US Department of Energy (DOE) released three funding opportunity announcements (FOAs) and one new finance program that, cumulatively, will provide an additional $7 billion for CCS infrastructure. Two of the FOAs feature grant funding for front-end engineering design (FEED) studies, and the final FOA and finance program feature a combination of grants and loans. Funding for these programs was appropriated in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which President Biden signed into law in November 2021. The IIJA delivers approximately $75.8 billion for energy and minerals-related research, demonstration, technology deployment, and incentives, including $12.2 billion administered by DOE and dedicated to CCS technology and infrastructure.

This blog post summarizes the three FOAs and the new finance program.

The outcome of the review may signal what climate-related laws and policies to expect in the UK in the coming years.

By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee

On 8 September 2022, newly appointed UK Prime Minister Liz Truss announced that Chris Skidmore MP, a Member of Parliament and former minister of energy and clean growth, would lead a review into the UK’s net zero commitment.

The previous administration established a UK target in 2019 to bring all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to a net zero level by 2050, in response to a recommendation from the Committee on Climate Change (the UK’s independent climate advisory body). The new Prime Minister, who during her leadership campaign had stated that she will “double down” on the UK’s attempts to meet its 2050 target, appointed Skidmore with the mandate to find the “fastest and most efficient way” to reach the target.

Skidmore, who as energy and clean growth minister signed the UK’s net zero target into law in 2019, has been given until the end of 2022 to report back with his findings.

The announcement underscores the continued focus on carbon capture, utilisation, and storage in UK energy policy in recent years.

By JP Brisson, Paul A. Davies, JP Sweny, Michael D. Green, and James Bee

On 6 July 2022, the UK government introduced the Energy Security Bill (the Bill) to Parliament, which contained a number of provisions in relation to the proposed future energy landscape in the UK. A key aspect of the Bill is its focus on low carbon energy, in particular the roles of carbon capture, utilisation, and storage (CCUS) technologies and the creation of hydrogen using carbon dioxide captured from the CCUS process (otherwise known as “blue” hydrogen).

The president’s executive order aims to use the US government’s procurement power to achieve “carbon pollution-free electricity” by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050.

By Jennifer Roy and Julie Miles

On December 8, 2021, President Biden issued an Executive Order on Catalyzing Clean Energy Industries and Jobs Through Federal Sustainability (EO), which aims to set the federal government — the largest purchaser in the country with an annual purchasing power of $650 billion — on a path to net zero emissions by 2050. The EO establishes the following policies as part of a whole-of-government strategy.