In the EU Commission's new draft guidelines on the equalisation scheme for the EEG levy, recycling companies are no longer included in the list of industries eligible for subsidies. The German Association for Secondary Raw Materials and Waste Management (BVSE) believes that the energy-intensive recycling industry in particular is dependent on subsidies.
„The expansion of the scope of the guidelines to include funding in the area of the circular economy and resource efficiency is to be welcomed and could send out the right signal, to achieve the climate targets of the Green Deal. However, the exclusion of companies with the NACE code 38.32 („recovery of sorted materials“) from the EEG surcharge subsidy is an irreconcilable contradiction in terms of the objective pursued, which must be urgently corrected,“ demanded the German government. BVSE-Eric Rehbock, Managing Director, in a joint statement with the Federal Association of German Steel Recycling and Disposal Companies (BDSV) to the EU Commission.
BVSE: Primary raw materials would displace secondary raw materials
The processing of waste is an energy-intensive activity in which recycling companies are under strong international competition and cost pressure. With the The energy costs of the complex plastics recycling process amount to 50 per cent of the gross value added. The energy-intensive production of shredded scrap and large shears for the manufacture of climate-friendly secondary raw materials for steel production would be just as badly affected by the cancellation of aid.
In a recent survey conducted by the bvse Around 70 per cent of the member companies indicated that they were categorised under NACE code 38.32 and affected by the discontinuation of this support.
„For companies, this means that electricity will become around 800,000 euros more expensive on average per year in future, depending on consumption. If the current subsidies are cancelled, resource-conserving and CO2-saving secondary raw materials will be displaced by cheaper primary raw materials in both national and international competition.“ Eric Rehbock, BVSE Managing Director
Setback also for climate protection targets
As a result, this would have a significant impact on achieving the EU's climate protection targets. „The companies in the recycling industry as part of the circular economy With CO2 emission savings of more than 100 million tonnes per year across all material flows in Germany alone, we are making a decisive contribution on the way to EU climate neutrality by 2050,“ Rehbock made clear.
According to the status report on the German circular economy for 2020 1.95 million tonnes of recycled plastics in Germany alone in 2019 which corresponds to an average saving of 3.3 million tonnes of CO2. In addition, a further 0.86 million tonnes of CO2 are saved through the use of around 1.16 million tonnes of plastic-derived substitute fuels. The use of around 3 million tonnes of shredded scrap, which saves 1.67 times the amount of CO2, also makes a significant contribution to achieving global climate protection targets.
Source: BVSE
