The European Commission said on Monday it "has approved, under EU State aid rules, a Polish scheme to partially compensate energy-intensive companies for higher electricity prices resulting from indirect emission costs under the EU Emission Trading System."
The EU executive added that the support measure was aimed at reducing the risk of "carbon leakage," whereby "companies relocate their production to countries outside the EU with less ambitious climate policies, resulting in increased greenhouse gas emissions globally."
It also said that the aid would benefit companies active in sectors that face significant electricity costs and are particularly exposed to international competition.
Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission in charge of competition policy, was quoted as saying that the EUR 10 billion "scheme paves the way for Poland to reduce the risk of carbon leakage for its energy-intensive industries."
She added: "At the same time, the incentives for a cost-effective decarbonisation of its economy will be maintained, in line with the Green Deal objectives, and undue competition distortions will be limited."
According to the European Commission's statement, "the aid amount is calculated based on electricity consumption efficiency benchmarks, which ensure that the beneficiaries are encouraged to save energy."
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Source: PAP, ec.europa.eu