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Implementation of RFNBOs targets in industry
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➢ The use of hydrogen in the steel industry yields the highest CO2 abatement potential per tonne consumed with lower and upper ranges comprised between 16kgCO2/kgH2 and 23kgCO2/KgH2.
➢ The European steel sector is expected to be the largest hydrogen industrial user making up 26% of total demand (industry, power, transport) and making it a key driver of the market ramp-up – if the right conditions are in place.
➢ The current levels of hydrogen production in Europe, alongside the corresponding infrastructure must speed up considerably for the steel sector to succeed in its uptake efforts.
➢ National hydrogen policies should be centred upon promoting and enabling the efficient use of clean hydrogen in sectors yielding the highest CO2 emissions abatement potential and with no cost-efficient alternatives to decarbonise.
➢ The RFNBOs (Renewable liquid and gaseous Fuels of Non-Biological Origin) industrial target shall be based on a realistic and holistic assessment of supply and demand, taking international competitiveness into account.
➢ The responsibility to achieve the RFNBOs consumption targets shall be placed at the Member State level with no binding obligation on individual companies.
➢ Provide enabling framework conditions supporting the final uptake of renewable hydrogen in industrial uses as a key precondition for the imposition of consumption targets – which includes:
o Endorsing the prioritisation principle in all national initiatives and policies;
o Closing the price gap for renewable hydrogen via targeted funding schemes such as the European Hydrogen Bank;
o Adopting short-term solutions to alleviate wholesale electricity prices for energy-intensive industries;
o Maintaining a flexible approach in the rules on the production of renewable hydrogen established in the delegated act on additionality and correlation criteria;
o Improving the availability of and accessibility to renewable power and hydrogen purchase agreements (i.e., respectively PPAs and HPAs) for energy-intensive industries;
o Fostering the expansion of renewable energy capacity by concretely accelerating and streamlining administrative permit-granting processes as provided for in RED III in Art. 15+.
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Brussels, 05 September 2024 – The latest developments in the steel sector and across critical value chains are worrying signs of a steady deterioration, endangering the survival and the transition of steelmakers and their key manufacturing customers in Europe, such as automotive. A Clean Industrial Deal including swift and radical measures in EU industrial, energy and trade policies, is the last chance to ensure Europe’s prosperity and shield European industry from cheap imports driven by third countries’ unfair trade practices, overcapacity and lower climate ambition, urges the European Steel Association.
Brussels, 25 July 2024 – Major indicators in the European steel market show a steeper-than-expected downward trend, further impacting the outlook for this year and the next. Poor demand conditions, driven by ongoing factors such as high energy prices, persistent inflation, economic uncertainty and geopolitical tensions, are exacerbated by a manufacturing crisis affecting the largest steel-using sectors, including construction and automotive. According to EUROFER’s latest Economic and Steel Market Outlook, apparent steel consumption is further deteriorating. After a slump (-3.1%) in the first quarter of 2024, its rebound for the full year has been revised downwards (to +1.4% from +3.2%), as well as for 2025 (+4.1% from +5.6%). Similarly, output in steel-using sectors, after a decline in the first quarter (-1.9%), is projected to experience a deeper-than-expected recession (-1.6% from -1%). A recovery is anticipated only in 2025 (+2.3%). Steel imports continue to show historically high shares (27%).
Third quarter 2024 report. Data up to, and including, first quarter 2024