{"id":35831,"date":"2018-02-12T10:07:39","date_gmt":"2018-02-12T10:07:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/?p=35831"},"modified":"2018-02-12T10:07:39","modified_gmt":"2018-02-12T10:07:39","slug":"eu-subsidies-massive-gas-pipeline-clash-climate-goals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2018\/02\/12\/eu-subsidies-massive-gas-pipeline-clash-climate-goals\/","title":{"rendered":"EU subsidies to a massive gas pipeline clash with climate goals"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the past few years there has been exponential growth<\/a> in clean energy investment \u2013 while fossil fuel assets are increasingly considered to be risky<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yet, on February 6, the European Investment Bank, the EU\u2019s long-term lending institution, voted to provide a \u20ac1.5 billion loan<\/a> to the controversial Trans Adriatic Pipeline (Tap).<\/p>\n

The Tap is the Western part of a larger Southern Gas Corridor proposal that would ultimately connect a large gas field in the Caspian Sea to Italy, crossing through Azerbaijan, Turkey, Greece and Albania. And while gas might be cleaner than coal, it\u2019s still a fossil fuel.<\/p>\n

So how does the EU\u2019s support for this major project fit in with its supposed goal of addressing climate change?<\/p>\n

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The proposed Trans Adriatic Pipeline will run nearly 900km from Greece to Italy (Pic:\u00a0Genti77 \/ wiki<\/a>, CC BY-SA<\/a>)<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

A key problem is the message this sends to the private sector, where renewable energy is increasingly seen as a good investment. Technologies once perceived as too risky and too expensive are now delivering worthwhile returns thanks to reduced costs and breakthroughs in energy storage. The price of electricity generated by solar, wind or hydro is now comparable with the national grid.<\/p>\n

Over the past decade, investor meetings have shifted from discussing whether the transition to a low carbon economy will start before 2050, to whether it will be completed in the same period.<\/p>\n

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#Pipeline<\/a> parts being laid out end to end (stringing) \u2013 this is now complete for more than 633km of #TAP<\/a> route. #engineering<\/a> #energy<\/a> #energysecurity<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/O6jpwVJ0K3<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 TAP (@tap_pipeline) January 5, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n