Taxonomy delegated act of February 2nd 2022

The report analyzes the EU's Taxonomy Delegated Act of February 2nd, 2022, which classifies certain gas and nuclear energy activities as "transitional." Reclaim Finance argues that the criteria for gas-fired plants are too lenient, potentially leading to stranded assets and incompatibility with the 1.5C goal. It further contends that new nuclear reactors are unsuitable as transitional activities due to long construction times and unresolved long-term waste management costs.

• The 270 gCO2e/kWh emission threshold for gas-fired power plants is considered incompatible with European climate goals and exceeds the current average carbon intensity of electricity production in Europe, which was 226 gCO2e/kWh in 2020.
• New gas-fired power plants granted construction permits before the end of 2030 risk becoming stranded assets, as they may continue emitting greenhouse gases until 2042 or 2051, contradicting the IEA's goal of carbon neutrality in electricity generation by 2035.
• The requirement for gas plants to be built in countries committed to phasing out coal is deemed ineffective because it lacks a specific exit date, meaning most EU countries except Poland would currently meet the criterion.
• The commitment to shift gas plants to 100% "low carbon gases" by 2035 is criticized as unrealistic due to the extreme scarcity of green hydrogen and biomethane, which together make up only 1.5% of global gas and hydrogen production respectively.
• New nuclear reactors are argued to be unsuitable as "transitional" activities because their long construction times (averaging 9.9 years for 2011-2020) mean they will not contribute to 2030 emission reductions and will likely operate beyond 2100.
• The requirement for a high-level radioactive waste disposal plan by 2050 is likely only achievable by France and Finland, though the French Cigéo project has not yet begun construction.
• While the act mandates funds for nuclear waste management and dismantling, the actual costs are immense and often underestimated; for example, the French Cigéo project is estimated at 25 billion euros and EDF estimated dismantling 58 reactors would cost over 30 billion euros.

APA

Reclaim Finance (2022). Taxonomy delegated act of February 2nd 2022. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Summary-and-analysis-DA-taxonomy-February-2nd-2022-Reclaim-Finance.pdf

Chicago

Reclaim Finance. Taxonomy delegated act of February 2nd 2022. 2022. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Summary-and-analysis-DA-taxonomy-February-2nd-2022-Reclaim-Finance.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Reclaim Finance |title=Taxonomy delegated act of February 2nd 2022 |date=2022 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Summary-and-analysis-DA-taxonomy-February-2nd-2022-Reclaim-Finance.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{reclaimfinance2022taxonomy, author = {{Reclaim Finance}}, title = {{Taxonomy delegated act of February 2nd 2022}}, institution = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2022}, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Summary-and-analysis-DA-taxonomy-February-2nd-2022-Reclaim-Finance.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }