EU states and lawmakers clinched a deal on Tuesday to expand Europe’s clean tech production, from solar and wind to carbon capture, as the bloc faces off with China and the US.
Brussels wants to reduce its reliance on China and make Europe more attractive for investment after the US unleashed a US$369 billion bonanza of clean technology subsidies last year.
The EU announced the plans last year, spurred by concerns the US program, which includes tax credits, would lure European manufacturers away.
Photo: Reuters
Belgium, which holds the rotating EU presidency, announced that negotiators had reached a provisional agreement. The European Commission wants at least 40 percent of green tech used in the EU to be produced in the bloc by 2030.
The law lists “strategic” technologies including nuclear energy as well as renewable energies like solar and wind.
The 40 percent target features in plans for a Net-Zero Industry Act to support the EU’s bid to become a carbon-neutral economy by 2050.
Under the law, public tenders would be weighed on criteria that could favor European companies, to counter similar moves by Beijing and Washington. The draft also seeks to make sure businesses can obtain permits faster. It is to enter into force after formal approval by EU states and the parliament.
“The most important thing is just to bring investment back to Europe and create a level playing field,” Solar First Inc’s European business chief Anja Lange said.
Access to clean tech — and avoiding an overreliance on imported technology — is a major source of concern in Europe, and many fear the draft law alone might not be enough to change the equation.
China dominates the solar power industry, and Europe’s solar panel manufacturers have made repeated pleas for help from Brussels, accusing Beijing of not playing fairly.
Last year, the EU opened a probe into Chinese electric car subsidies, and there are hopes among some in the industry that it will launch another investigation into Chinese solar panels.
However, European Commissioner for Financial Services Mairead McGuinness tamped down any such hopes on Monday, saying the bloc must carefully consider the impact of its actions.
“Any potential measure needs to be weighed against the objectives we have set ourselves when it comes to the energy transition,” she told lawmakers in Strasbourg.
Real estate agent and property developer JSL Construction & Development Co (愛山林) led the average compensation rankings among companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) last year, while contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) finished 14th. JSL Construction paid its employees total average compensation of NT$4.78 million (US$159,701), down 13.5 percent from a year earlier, but still ahead of the most profitable listed tech giants, including TSMC, TWSE data showed. Last year, the average compensation (which includes salary, overtime, bonuses and allowances) paid by TSMC rose 21.6 percent to reach about NT$3.33 million, lifting its ranking by 10 notches
SEASONAL WEAKNESS: The combined revenue of the top 10 foundries fell 5.4%, but rush orders and China’s subsidies partially offset slowing demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) further solidified its dominance in the global wafer foundry business in the first quarter of this year, remaining far ahead of its closest rival, Samsung Electronics Co, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. TSMC posted US$25.52 billion in sales in the January-to-March period, down 5 percent from the previous quarter, but its market share rose from 67.1 percent the previous quarter to 67.6 percent, TrendForce said in a report. While smartphone-related wafer shipments declined in the first quarter due to seasonal factors, solid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) devices and urgent TV-related orders
Prices of gasoline and diesel products at domestic fuel stations are this week to rise NT$0.2 and NT$0.3 per liter respectively, after international crude oil prices increased last week, CPC Corp, Taiwan (台灣中油) and Formosa Petrochemical Corp (台塑石化) said yesterday. International crude oil prices last week snapped a two-week losing streak as the geopolitical situation between Russia and Ukraine turned increasingly tense, CPC said in a statement. News that some oil production facilities in Alberta, Canada, were shut down due to wildfires and that US-Iran nuclear talks made no progress also helped push oil prices to a significant weekly gain, Formosa said
MINERAL DIPLOMACY: The Chinese commerce ministry said it approved applications for the export of rare earths in a move that could help ease US-China trade tensions Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) is today to meet a US delegation for talks in the UK, Beijing announced on Saturday amid a fragile truce in the trade dispute between the two powers. He is to visit the UK from yesterday to Friday at the invitation of the British government, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. He and US representatives are to cochair the first meeting of the US-China economic and trade consultation mechanism, it said. US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that a new round of trade talks with China would start in London beginning today,
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