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Minister: climate goals can be achieved only with nuclear energy
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The challenges posed by climate change should not be neglected despite the hardships the coronavirus pandemic has brought on economy and health care, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Wednesday.
In a video message addressing the opening ceremony of Okoindustria, a two-day virtual green expo held for environmental enterprises, Szijjártó called for the coordination of sustainability and competitiveness. Hungary has succeeded in increasing its economic performance while curbing the emissions of harmful substances, he said.
While Hungary makes up 2 percent of the EU’s population, its domestic emissions only account for 1 percent,
he said.
Carbon dioxide emissions have fallen by 32 percent since 1990, and energy consumption by 15 percent, he said. Hungary has also pledged to produce 90 percent of its electricity carbon-free by 2030, he said, adding the country aims to be carbon neutral by 2050.
Regarding sustainable energy resources, Szijjártó noted that the capacity of solar panels in Hungary has grown 13-fold since 2018.
The fact that there will be a battery manufacturing site in Hungary is not going to incentivise Hungarians to buy EV’s. If the government is serious about reducing emissions from vehicles it needs to ensure that the charging point infrastructure is put in place – everywhere. It also needs to offer some financial incentive for people to switch from ICE cars to EV’s. This battery thing is a red herring.