Activities of Ricardo CORTÉS LASTRA related to 2010/0220(NLE)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION Proposal for a Council regulation on state aid to facilitate the closure of uncompetitive coal mines
Amendments (23)
Amendment 17 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) The small contribution of subsidised coal to the overall energy mix no longer justifies the maintenance of such subsidies with a view tof securing the supply of energy on a Union level, provided this is not secured by other means.
Amendment 21 #
Proposal for a regulation
Title
Title
on State aid to facilitate the closuretransition to competitivity of uncompetitive coal mines
Amendment 22 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) The small contribution of subsidised coal to the overall energy mix no longer justifies the maintenance of such subsidies with a view of securing the supply of energy on a Union level, as long as this result cannot be guaranteed by other means.
Amendment 23 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3
Recital 3
Amendment 23 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3
Recital 3
Amendment 24 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3 a (new)
Recital 3 a (new)
(3a) Considering the scarcity of autochthonous energy sources in the EU, the Union's policies for promoting renewable fuels and fossil fuels with low carbon content in order to generate electricity justify the support to coal mines. The categories of aid permitted by Regulation (EC) No 1407/2002 should not be maintained indefinitely. In any event, all public aid aimed at reducing the effects of pollution caused by coal, should be maintained. Those mines that, after a ten-year period, are able to achieve competitiveness and require a financial boost from the public sector to enable them to make technological investments for environmental purposes, will also be exempt from the elimination of aid.
Amendment 25 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Without prejudice to the general State aid rules, Member States should be able to take measures to alleviate the social and regional consequences of the possible closure of those mines, that is to say the orderly winding down of activities in the context of an irrevocable closure plan and/or the financing of exceptional costs, inherited liabilities in particular.
Amendment 26 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 3 a (new)
Recital 3 a (new)
(3a) Indigenous energy sources in the EU being scarce, the Union’s policies of encouraging renewable and lower carbon fossil fuels for power generation do justify support for coal mines. The categories of aid permitted by Regulation (EC) No 1407/2002 should not be maintained indefinitely. In any event, State aid intended to reduce the pollutant effect of coal should be maintained. Mines that after this 10-year period are capable of being competitive but still need State assistance with regard to implementation of environmental technology investments should be exempted from this discontinuation of subsidies.
Amendment 29 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) Without prejudice to the general State aid rules, Member States should be able to take measures to alleviate the social and regional consequences of the possible closure of those mines, that is to say the orderly winding down of activities in the context of an irrevocable closure plan and/or the financing of exceptional costs, inherited liabilities in particular.
Amendment 29 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 8 a (new)
Recital 8 a (new)
(8a) A minimum level of coal production, together with other measures, especially those aiming at the promotion of renewable energy sources, will contribute to the maintenance of a quota of primary energy sources, which will allow energy security in the Union to be reinforced significantly. In addition, a quota of autochthonous sources of primary energy will help to promote environmental goals in relation with sustainable development. In this framework of boosting autochthonous energy sources in Europe in order to counterbalance the continent's huge dependence on energy sources from outside its borders, consideration should be given to complementing autochthonous energy sources, which in many Member States are represented solely by coal, with non-fossil ones.
Amendment 31 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) In accomplishing its task, the European Commission should ensure that normal conditions of competition are established, maintained and complied with. With regard to more especially the electricity market, aid to the coal industry should not be such as to affect electricity producers' choice of sources of primary energy supply. Consequently, the prices and quantities of coal should be freely agreed between the contracting parties in the light of prevailing conditions on the world market. At any event, and in order to avoid social or environmental dumping, the Union authorities should ensure that the coal from third countries which is commercialised in the Union is extracted in accordance with certain social and environmental standards which are equivalent to those demanded to Union mines.
Amendment 33 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 2
Article 2 – paragraph 2
2. Aid shall cover only costs in connection with coal for the production of electricity, the combined production of heat and electricity, the production of coke and the fuelling of blast furnaces in the steel industry as well as in connection with research and investments in technology aimed at reducing coal polluting emissions, where such use takes place in the Union.
Amendment 35 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) the operation of the production units concerned must form part of a closure plan the deadline of which does not extend beyond 31 OctoDecember 201420 ;
Amendment 36 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) the production units concerned must be closed definitively in accordance with the closure plan, in the event that they have not become competitive and provided that their continued operation is not necessary to meet Union's energy needs;
Amendment 40 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point f
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point f
(f) the overall amount of closure aid granted by a Member State for any particular undertaking must follow a downward trend, where the reduction between successive periods of fifteen months must not be less than 33 percent of the aid provided . This aid reduction shall not be applicable to the mines that have succeeded in becoming competitive during the initial fifteen month period of the closure planis period and which require public investments aimed only at reducing the polluting effects of coal ;
Amendment 42 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 8 a (new)
Recital 8 a (new)
(8a) A minimum level of coal production, together with other measures, in particular to promote renewable energy sources, will help to maintain a quota of primary energy sources, which will significantly boost the European Union's energy security. Furthermore, a quota of indigenous primary energy sources will also serve to promote environmental objectives within the framework of sustainable development. Within this context of boosting the Union’s indigenous energy sources in order to counteract the continent’s huge energy dependence, supplementing non-fossil indigenous energy sources with fossil ones needs to be considered, coal being the sole source of indigenous fossil energy in some Member States.
Amendment 45 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2
Article 3 – paragraph 2
2. If the production units to which aid is granted pursuant to paragraph 1 are not closed at the date fixed in the closure plan as authorised by the Commission, they have not become competitive and their continued operation is not necessary in the light of the energy autonomy conditions of that State, the Member State concerned shall recover all aid granted in respect of the whole period covered by the closure plan.
Amendment 51 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10
Recital 10
(10) In accomplishing its task, the European Commission should ensure that normal conditions of competition are established, maintained and complied with. With regard to more especially to the electricity market, aid to the coal industry should not be such as to affect electricity producers' choice of sources of primary energy supply. Consequently, the prices and quantities of coal should be freely agreed between the contracting parties in the light of prevailing conditions on the world market. In any event, and to prevent social or environmental dumping, the Community authorities should ensure that the social and environmental standards in mines in non-EU countries producing coal for marketing in the Union equate to the standards required of European coal mines.
Amendment 56 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 2
Article 2 – paragraph 2
2. Aid shall cover only costs in connection with coal for the production of electricity, the combined production of heat and electricity, the production of coke and, the fuelling of blast furnaces in the steel industry, research and technology investment designed to reduce pollutant emissions from coal, where such use takes place in the Union.
Amendment 58 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point a
a) the operation of the production units concerned must form part of a closure plan the deadline of which does not extend beyond 31 OctoDecember 201420;
Amendment 62 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point b
b) the production units concerned must be closed definitively in accordance with the closure plan if they have not become competitive by that date and provided that the Union’s energy needs do not require their continued existence;
Amendment 66 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point f
Article 3 – paragraph 1 – point f
f) the overall amount of closure aid granted by a Member State for any particular undertaking must follow a downward trend, where the reduction between successive periods of fifteen months must not be less than 33 percent of the aid provided in the initial fifteen mon. This reduction in aid shall not apply to mines that, having managed to be competitive in this period, still require public sector investment solely for the period of the closure planurpose of reducing pollution produced by coal;
Amendment 74 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2
Article 3 – paragraph 2
2. If the production units to which aid is granted pursuant to paragraph 1 are not closed at the date fixed in the closure plan as authorised by the Commission, have not become competitive and the energy sufficiency situation in the Member State concerned does not require their continued existence, the Member State concerned shall recover all aid granted in respect of the whole period covered by the closure plan.