We have expanded the list of climate policies we assess company engagement with to incorporate land-use related policy, referring to legislative or regulatory measures to enhance and protect ecosystems and land where carbon is being stored. Assessments under this category are currently underweighted in terms of their contribution to the overall company metrics. This weighting will be progressively increased over the next 6 months.
We adjusted the terminology used to describe the queries running down the left-hand side of our scoring matrix and added additional explanatory text to the info-boxes. This has no impact on the scores and methodology. It has been done following user feedback to improve clarity.
Climate Policy Engagement Overview: Eurogas appears to be highly engaged with EU climate policies, with overall mixed positions. While its top-line messaging appears to be positive, its position on some climate-related regulations appear to be more mixed, while also advocating for a continued role for fossil gas in a future energy-mix.
Top-line Messaging on Climate Policy: Eurogas appears to clearly recognize the need for action in the face of climate change in its climate communications. In its March 2021 climate ambition statement, the association stated that it holds an established commitment to the Paris Agreement as well as the EU’s 2030 and 2050 climate targets. Eurogas President Didier Holleaux stated support for the EU climate neutrality target in 2050 in a September 2021 newsletter. The association also supported policy and regulatory action, including carbon pricing policies, to tackle climate change in a February 2021 consultation response.
Engagement with Climate-Related Regulations: Eurogas’s engagement with climate-related regulations appears to be mixed. In an October 2022 joint position paper, Eurogas advocated to weaken significant elements of the EU Methane Regulation for the energy sector, including reducing the frequency of leak detection and repair measures, and opposing venting and flaring proposals. Furthermore, in an April 2022 newsletter Eurogas President Didier Holleaux advocated to weaken the EU's Energy Efficiency Directive revision, by calling for energy savings from coal to gas transitions to be included in the energy savings obligation.
Eurogas advocated to weaken the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive (RED) revision in a November 2021 consultation response, by advocating for the inclusion of non-renewable low-carbon fuels, including low-carbon hydrogen in RED targets. Since 2019, Eurogas, alongside the European Biogas Association (EBA), appears to have been pushing for a binding target of 11% by 2030 for renewable and decarbonized gas usage, but does not appear to clearly specify what gases would qualify within this. In its March 2021 climate ambition statement, it added that such a target must be accompanied by a competitive internal energy market that promotes the integration and trading of low-carbon gases.
While in a February 2021 consultation response, Eurogas stated support for a Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) but with exceptions, suggesting it should only cover manufactured products and complement the current EU ETS free allowances. In the February 2021 consultation, Eurogas appeared to support the strengthening of the EU ETS to match the increased climate ambition of the EU. This was reaffirmed in Eurogas’s March 2021 climate ambition statement, where the association repeated its support for strengthening the EU ETS.
Positioning on Energy Transition: Eurogas is campaigning for the role of gas in Europe’s future energy mix, seemingly looking to defend the role of fossil gas while simultaneously promoting increased contributions from renewable and low-carbon gases. In a March 2023 industry association joint letter to Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida, the association advocated for new fossil gas and LNG infrastructure investments ahead of a May 2023 G7 meeting.
In a January 2022 joint letter, Eurogas called for a weakening of the EU Commission's proposal for the sustainable finance taxonomy by advocating for the inclusion of fossil gas. Furthermore, in a June 2023 Energate article, President Didier Holleaux advocated for new exploration of fossil gas and investments in gas infrastructure. In the article, Holleaux also criticized measures in the REPowerEU legislation, calling for more support for LNG and fossil gas.
In a May 2023 consultation response, the association advocated to weaken the EU’s heavy-duty vehicle emission standards, by calling for the inclusion of LNG and CNG as a compliance pathway. Additionally, in a May 2023 Montel article, Eurogas Secretary-General, James Watson, did not appear to support the EU’s 2030 Gas Demand Reduction Target. Eurogas also signed an April 2023 industry association joint letter to EU and US policymakers, directly advocating for new LNG infrastructure investments.