Poland intends to push for the EU proposal to reduce and track methane emissions to allow mines to emit eight rather than five tons of methane per one kilotonne of coal mined, as well as exempt coking coal from new regulations, Poland’s Deputy Minister of State Asset, Marek Wesoły has announced.
The law currently under discussion in the European Parliament introduces a limit of five tonnes of methane emission per one kilotonne of extracted coal, different from coking coal from 2027 and one of three tonnes per kilotonne, including for coking coal, from 2031.
Should the regulations come into force, Polish mines would emit a lot more methane – on average, eight to 14 tons of methane per kilotonne of extracted coal, and would face fines up to 1,500,000,000 zlotys (€320,531,000) annually.
“We need a compromise at a level of eight tons of methane per 1,000 tons of extracted coal. This is the target that we are going to achieve using negotiations,” Wesoły told local Radio Katowice. “Otherwise, as many as nine mines may face enormous fines, making their functioning uneconomic,” he explained.
On coking coal, Poland is also seeking for it to be exempt from new regulations, particularly, as noted by the minister, the resolution is also meant to embrace coking coal.
Today, the minister insisted that coking coal is a critical energy source for the EU. It thus makes no sense to charge it with fines if the bloc wants to ensure the security of steel deliveries, he added.
“It is a regulation that hits Poland in the first place,” Wesoły argued.
(Aleksandra Krzysztoszek | EURACTIV.pl)
Source: euractiv.com
