Briefing on the CEEAG

The CEEAG guidelines, effective from January 2022, streamline public financial support for decarbonisation, renewables, and nature restoration while introducing new categories for clean mobility and coal phase-out. While they promote technology-neutral competitive tenders, the document highlights concerns regarding continued support for fossil gas, the lack of a clear definition for 'low-carbon hydrogen', and the limited ambition of energy efficiency commitments for energy-intensive users.

• The CEEAG introduce a general 'decarbonisation measures' category where various technologies, including renewables, energy efficiency, and carbon capture, should ideally compete in multi-technology tenders to ensure cost-effectiveness, though technology-specific tenders remain possible under certain conditions.
• The guidelines maintain support for fossil gas through several channels, including gas infrastructure, capacity contracts, and low-carbon hydrogen production, provided Member States can demonstrate the aid contributes to 2030 and 2050 climate targets and avoids 'lock-in'.
• A new aid category is established for the closure of coal, oil shale, and peat plants and mines to support a just transition, though the CEEAG does not set a mandatory phase-out date for Member States.
• The CEEAG strengthen the role of NGOs and citizens by stating that aid beneficiaries must comply with Union environmental law and that those alleging breaches should be admissible to file actions in national courts.
• Energy-intensive users (EIUs) can continue to receive reductions from electricity and social policy levies to prevent carbon leakage, with 117 industry sectors eligible, provided they commit to some level of energy efficiency or decarbonisation.
• While direct aid to nuclear power plants is outside the CEEAG scope, indirect support is possible through aid for low-carbon hydrogen production, carbon-free energy infrastructure, and eligibility for energy-intensive user reductions.

APA

ClientEarth (2021). Briefing on the CEEAG. https://www.clientearth.org/media/vw1ea11b/legal-briefing-on-the-ceeag-final-24-12-2021-corrected.pdf

Chicago

ClientEarth. Briefing on the CEEAG. 2021. https://www.clientearth.org/media/vw1ea11b/legal-briefing-on-the-ceeag-final-24-12-2021-corrected.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=ClientEarth |title=Briefing on the CEEAG |date=December 2021 |url=https://www.clientearth.org/media/vw1ea11b/legal-briefing-on-the-ceeag-final-24-12-2021-corrected.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{clientearth2021briefing, author = {{ClientEarth}}, title = {{Briefing on the CEEAG}}, institution = {ClientEarth}, year = {2021}, month = dec, url = {https://www.clientearth.org/media/vw1ea11b/legal-briefing-on-the-ceeag-final-24-12-2021-corrected.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }