The European Commission has today published its Fit for 55 package aiming for a 55 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, compared to the 1990 level. Neste welcomes the EU’s continuing commitment to long-term policies and the ambition to become climate neutral by 2050. As a next step, the legislative proposals will be discussed by the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament.
“As a whole, the Fit for 55 package seems to provide the tools to combat the climate crisis during this decade by raising the ambition level of emission cuts across different sectors of the economy. It will support the growth of renewable fuels markets in both road and aviation segments. The Commission’s proposal to establish an EU-wide obligation to supply a growing minimum share of Sustainable Aviation Fuels as of 2025 will create a large market and progressively cut down emissions from flying. The package also supports Neste’s climate commitments, including to reach carbon neutral production by 2035. Now that the Commision proposals will enter the legislative process, it will be important to further raise the level of ambition and keep the focus on emission cuts by various solutions, not only by specific technologies,” says Ilkka Räsänen, Vice President, Public Affairs at Neste.
All solutions are needed to reduce emissions
Neste firmly believes that all solutions are needed in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the societies. On European roads, the number of electric cars is growing at a rapid pace, which is a logical and welcome development as the power generation sector is embracing emission free technologies. However, achieving the ambitious climate targets requires both electric vehicles (EVs) and renewable transport fuels, as internal combustion engine vehicles will keep playing a key role for a long time, particularly in heavy-duty vehicles.
The average age of cars in Europe is more than 10 years; this means that many new vehicles sold today will still be in use for another 15-20 years. When it comes to especially heavy-duty vehicles, internal combustion engines and renewable fuels, both biofuels and so-called e-fuels (Power-to-X), will be needed for a long time. After all, the combustion engine is not the problem when the fuel is renewable and sustainably produced. Already today, customers using the Neste MY Renewable Diesel™ made from 100% renewable raw materials can reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by up to 90%* compared to fossil diesel.
The aviation industry has already taken steps in the right direction by committing to the target of achieving carbon-neutral growth from 2020 onwards. Neste as the world’s leading producer of Sustainable Aviation Fuel is committed to helping the aviation industry to meet the proposed EU-wide obligation.
Following its sustainable sourcing principles, Neste continues to develop the availability of emerging, lower-quality waste and residue raw materials, as well as agricultural and forest harvesting residues, algae and municipal solid waste as future raw materials. Neste is also exploring Power-to-X technologies as a new renewable fuel. With the continued support of EU policies, Neste therefore has its eyes set on the short, medium, and long term uptake opportunities for renewable solutions in fuels and in materials.
