The judge’s ruling on nitrogen last week may have major consequences for Tata Steel IJmuiden’s greening plans. Through the pronounciation The construction of various wind farms off the coast of the Netherlands could cause a delay of up to two years, Tennet told the TV program Buitenhof last weekend. These parks are to supply the energy for the new CO2-free factories of the steel company.
The question is whether Tata Steel can sustain any loss of time. It seems ironic that environmental measures may not allow Tata Steel to reduce its significant CO2 emissions enough before the climate benchmark year 2030.
In 2030, Tata Steel wants the first of two new, green factories to be operational. This should reduce emissions of 12.5 megatons of CO2 per year by 40 percent. The new factories must run on hydrogen. It is not yet available at competitive prices, but Tata Steel is counting on it to be in 2030.
A lot of energy is needed to make hydrogen, which will largely have to come from the wind farms. At least, that’s how it is stated in the Green Steel plan, in which Tata’s sustainability plans are explained. The plan came from the FNV.
‘Bomb under the Netherlands’
According to former FNV leader and co-writer of the plan Roel Berghuis, the wind farms are therefore essential for Groen Staal. But it wouldn’t surprise him at all if the consequences of the nitrogen ruling turn out to be wrong. “The chairman of the largest employers’ organization called the nitrogen ruling a bomb among the Netherlands, because a lot of things come to a standstill.”
According to Berghuis, there are other options for Tata Steel to obtain hydrogen than from the wind farms off the coast: the EU set up a project earlier this year to make Europe less dependent on Russian gas. But the hydrogen plans from that project have not yet crystallized either.
It is the kind of project on which Tata Steel depends, because hydrogen is one of the pillars of Green Steel. “But it doesn’t really matter where the hydrogen comes from,” the company now says. It is especially important that by 2030 a ‘hydrogen economy’ is underway that makes hydrogen affordable. “Prime Minister Rutte also makes agreements about hydrogen during the climate summit in Egypt. These are good developments.”
Tata Steel, for example, remains optimistic, but the company is cautious: “At least we are on schedule, but we also remain dependent on others.”
Plan B
Former FNV member Berghuis, about this: “We are almost a year further and I see too little progress”, he told NH Nieuws about Groen Staal at the end of August. “Take the lead, chart a course,” he advised Tata.
Don’t wait until things might go wrong, he now repeats: “Tata Steel must ensure that the Green Steel plan becomes as concrete as possible. Which permits should Tata Steel receive, what does subsidy need and also: how much hydrogen is there exactly? needed and where should it come from?”
Tata Steel does have a plan B, if there is not yet enough affordable hydrogen available around 2030, but that plan is not ideal. Tata: “Until there is hydrogen, the new factories can also run on gas. That is not the aim, because we are heading for green hydrogen. With gas we will then emit less CO2 than we do now.”
Tomorrow maybe more clear
The question is whether ‘less’ would also be enough to reduce CO2 emissions by 40 percent by 2030. No matter how expensive gas is. But Tata Steel must achieve the 40 percent CO2 reduction, says Berghuis: “This must and will be achieved. Otherwise we can throw the Paris agreement and our national climate agreement overboard.”
Tomorrow, it may become clearer about the consequences of the nitrogen ruling for the future of Tata Steel, when Minister Adriaansens of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy tells the House of Representatives about the status of the sustainability agreements between the government and the company.