Consider the following statements:

Statement-I:
The European Parliament approved The Net-Zero Industry Act recently.

Statement-II:
The European Union intends to achieve carbon neutrality by 2040 and therefore aims to develop all of its own clean technology by that time.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

(a) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II explains Statement-I
(b) Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct, but Statement-II does not explain Statement-I
(c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect
(d) Statement-I is incorrect, but Statement-II is correct

Correct answer is (c) Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect

Explanation:

Statement-I is correct: The European Parliament recently approved the Net-Zero Industry Act. This act aims to bolster EU production in technologies needed for decarbonisation and was formally approved by the European Parliament on April 25, 2024 .
Statement-II is incorrect: The European Union aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, not 2040. This objective is part of the European Green Deal and is a legally binding target under the European Climate Law.

Learn more

Net-Zero Industry Act:
- Objective: To bolster EU production in technologies needed for decarbonisation.
- Target: Produce 40% of annual deployment needs in net-zero technologies by 2030 and capture 15% of the global market value for these technologies .
- Technologies Supported: Renewable technologies, nuclear, industrial decarbonisation, grid, energy storage technologies, and biotech .
- Permitting Process: Simplified with maximum timelines for project authorisation .
- Net-Zero Acceleration Valleys: Initiatives to speed up the permitting process by delegating parts of the evidence collection for environmental assessments to member states .
- Sustainability and Resilience Criteria: Applied in public procurement procedures and auctions to deploy renewable energy, with a minimum of 30% of the volume auctioned annually in the member state or a maximum of 6GW auctioned annually per country .
EU’s Climate Neutrality Goal:
- Target Year: 2050.
- Legal Framework: European Climate Law.
- Alignment: Part of the European Green Deal and consistent with the Paris Agreement.
- National Strategies: Member States have developed national long-term strategies to achieve the greenhouse gas emissions reductions needed to meet their commitments under the Paris Agreement and the EU’s climate neutrality objective.