Energy-intensive industries would be the hardest hit by more severe EU climate rules Shutterstock

Higher emissions reduction targets included in the EU’s “Energy Roadmap 2050” would cause a “drastic deterioration” of the competitiveness of many Polish companies and steep financial losses, according to a new report commissioned by the Polish Chamber of Commerce (PCC).

Adopted by the European Commission in December 2011, the new energy road map envisions reducing total EU emissions by 80 to 95 percent from 1990 levels by 2050. That’s a minimum of four times the current 20 percent reduction target for 2020.

The EC’s vision for 2050 includes low-energy and low-emission housing and workplaces, electric cars, a boost in investment and new jobs in clean technologies and energy, and annual savings of €88 billion on health care and air pollution control.

Bolesław Jankowski, head of EnergSys, the consultancy firm that drafted the report for PCC, paints a different picture for Poland should the road map be implemented. Mr Jankowski told journalists at a conference last Tuesday that the cost of implementing the new road map for Polish companies would reach zł.22 billion per year by 2030. This, he added, represents more than half of the total Polish industry profits in 2009, which amounted to zł.40 billion.

And these are only the costs of climate policy. A planned rise in energy prices also has to be added to the bill, which will be paid in large part by Poland’s energy-intensive sectors such as metals, cement, chemicals, coke, paper, coal and lignite, and wood products. At stake are the 800,000 jobs in these energy-intensive sectors, argues Mr Jankowski.

In a position paper adopted on the basis of EnergSys’ report, the PCC urges the Polish government to oppose attempts to strengthen current EU climate policy. The “Energy Roadmap 2050” is scheduled to be discussed at the European Council environment committee meeting on March 9.