EC emissions rule 'will divert billions away from energy transition'

The European Commission’s (EC) plan to introduce emissions performance standards (EPS) on peaking fossil-fuel power plants from 2020 will unintentionally slow — and increase the cost of — the energy transition, according to an independent study commissioned by Eurelectric.

As part of its draft Clean Energy Package, unveiled last November, the EC proposed a capacity mechanism — paying utilities to keep underutilised generation capacity on line to be used in times of need — which does not allow the participation of power plants that emit more than 550 grams of CO₂ per kWh.