Climate and CoronaCan policies and financial support address both?

A perspective from the Netherlands

Bert Stuij

Manager Energy

Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland / Netherlands Enterprise Agency

Climate and Corona Policies

• An introduction to RVO / Netherlands Enterprise Agency

• The climate policy package

• Corona in the Netherlands

• The Corona support package

• Pointers for synergy

• Looking forward

2

Netherlands Enterprise Agency overview

Our mission

Partner and financier for:

• Energy and Sustainability

• Innovation and Economic Development

• Agriculture and landscape

• International ‘aid, trade, collaborate’

For sustainability and prosperity

3

Netherlands Enterprise Agency overview

Our tools

Integrated programmes with:

• Information, advice, organisation

• Funding

• Networking

• Implementation of laws and regulations

For maximum effect.

4

Climate and Corona

Implementing climate policies (1)

Energy policy background: Climate Agreement

• Societal agreement with political backing

• CO2 emissions halved by 2030

• CO2 emission negligible in 2050

• Action plans for power, industry, mobility, agro, buildings.

5

Climate and Corona

Corona in the Netherlands

• First reported case February 27th

• Restrictions and partial lockdown from March 15th

• Easing from June 1st, and more extensive from July 1st

• Estimated deaths from corona – ca. 9000, or about 50 per hundred thousand inhabitants.

• Extensive support package for companies, employees, small businesses, flexible personnel – unconditional

• Specific support for ‘national icons’ including KLM –limited sustainability criteria.

Intensive care entries

Hospital entries

Climate and Corona

Financial and economic support measures – a selectionIncome support – implemented by the agency of the ministry of social affairs, or local governments

• Income support (NOW) – companies that lose more than 20% turnover get supported, so that they can continue to pay wages

• Income support for self employed (TOZO) – self employed people and ‘one person companies’ get income support and are entitled to a loan.

• Income support for employees on flexible contracts (TOFA).

Tax delays and tax holidays – implementation by the tax office

• Extensions for tax payment, waver for fines.

Company support – implementation by RVO, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (selection)

• Additional government guarantees for company loans (GO) – upper limit tripled to 150 mln

• Extended government guarantees for small company loans (BBMKB)

• Specific one-off subsidies for ‘hard hit sectors’ (TOGS and TVL)

• Extensions in pay-back requirements for government innovation credit schemes

• Extension of deadlines in a variety of subsidy programmes.

• Extra subsidy for innovations and digitization in the health sector (SET)

Company support – implemented by Invest-Nl

• Credits and loans for start ups and scale ups (COL/TOPPS) - total ca 750 mln, often leveraged with private financiers.

Climate and Corona

Synergy or competition? • The Dutch minister for economic affairs and climate has given his views on

June 19th (‘gevolgen COVID-19 voor het klimaat en energiebeleid)

• All targets and policy measures for climate and sustainability remain in place

• Budgets will be extended or brought forward, if green measures also accelerate the economic restart.

• Emphasis on climate and energy policies as economic opportunity

• Specifics on mobility (e.g. digitization, biking), public investments (e.g. infrastructure, government buildings), R&D (spin off will have economic benefits), and labor market effects (more personnel needed in many domains, education)

• However, the COVID measures so far have not been geared towards sustainability, and there is some concern about the effects of current measures on the availability of government funds in future years.

Climate and Corona

Final notions

• The European Green Deal is positioned as cornerstone of the green re-start of Europe. This can have a major impact, particularly if national policies are aligned with that deal. The Netherlands intends this alignment.

• The IEA presented last week ‘Sustainable Recoveries’, and showed a massive additional economic effect if it is now decided to invest in climate and sustainability. Analysis done with the IMF.

• Immediate effect of very low prices for fossil fuels (because of falling demand) puts economics of renewable/sustainable investments under some pressure.

• A restart is necessary. First indications are that renewable investments take a huge knock, companies are going bust, personnel is sometimes lost.

• The RVO instruments for climate and energy are now scrutinized for the contribution they can make to the ‘green restart’ of the Dutch Economy.

11

See you in the future – soon after the green re-start …

Bert Stuij