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Kiene and Others v Parliament and Council - decision

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Lorenz Kiene and three companies active in the production and distribution of synthetic, carbon-neutral fuels (eFuels) appealed an order of the General Court that had dismissed their action as inadmissible. The appellants challenged Article 1(1) of Regulation (EU) 2023/851, part of the EU’s Fit for 55 package, which sets strengthened CO₂ emissions standards for new passenger cars and vans, including a 100% reduction target for 2035, effectively ending sales of new internal-combustion vehicles.

The appellants argued that the regulation unlawfully disadvantages eFuels by focusing only on tailpipe emissions and ignoring lifecycle emissions, thus preventing their fuels from being considered climate-neutral. In May 2024, the General Court rejected their action as inadmissible, holding that the applicants were not individually concerned under Article 263 TFEU because the regulation is a measure of general application affecting all market operators in the automotive and fuel sectors.

The appellants claimed they were individually affected due to their pioneering position and significant investments in the eFuel sector and that rejecting their action left them with no legal avenue to challenge the Regulations. 

The European Court of Justice dismissed the appeal in full. Indeed, it upheld the General Court’s finding that the applicants were not individually concerned. Their situation was not different from other economic operators affected by the 2035 zero-emission target, such as automotive suppliers. The regulation remains a general legislative measure. It rejected the argument based on Article 47 of the Charter, clarifying that the right to effective judicial protection does not override the Treaty rules on admissibility of direct actions. Since the applicants did not meet the conditions of Article 263 TFEU, their action was correctly dismissed. 

Kiene and Others v Parliament and Council

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An aim to achieve a quantifiable outcome within a given time-frame, set by an institution such as a national government.

Policy instruments are techniques or tools used by governing authorities to promote certain policies in order to achieve predetermined goals. Put simply, instruments are how a government tries to achieve its goals, with this taxonomy being focused on national policy instruments.

Risk is the potential for adverse consequences resulting from the dynamic interplay between (climate-related) hazards, exposure, and vulnerability of affected human or ecological systems.

Groups  of people who are adversely affected by climate change or the response to it

A set of principles, processes, and practices that build economic and political power to shift from an extractive economy to a regenerative economy.

Renewable energy means all forms of energy produced from renewable sources in a sustainable manner.

Fossil fuel is a generic term for non-renewable energy sources such as coal, fossil gas, and oil (including crude oil, and petroleum products), that can be used for electricity and heat generation. Fossil fuels are hydrocarbons formed from pressurised and heated organic material buried over millions of years.

Molecules in the atmosphere that play a key role in the greenhouse effect by trapping heat radiating from Earth’s surface.

Area of the economy in which actors engage in identical or related activities.

In human systems, the process of adjustment to actual or expected climate change and its effects, in order to moderate harm, increase resilience or exploit beneficial opportunities. In natural systems, the process of adjustment to actual climate change and its effects; human intervention may facilitate adjustment to expected climate change and its effects.

The management and allocation of funds, assets and investments to meet various objectives

A long-lived, colourless gas, chiefly emitted from fossil fuel combustion, deforestation and cement production.

A target to reduce the prevalence of a greenhouse gas over a specific time frame

Social and cultural groups that share collective ancestral ties to the lands and natural resources where they live, occupy or from which they have been displaced

People with different national or cultural traditions from the dominant population

Activities that involve planning, designing and building infrastructure, residential, and commercial structures.

Production of electricity and heat from solar irradiation.

A commitment to balance GHG emissions with removal by a certain point in time, effectively reducing the net emissions to zero

Codes and standards are regulatory instruments that specify minimum standards to protect health and safety. This ranges from performance standards, which prescribe outcomes while allowing flexibility to achieve compliance, to the more prescriptive approach of technology-specific standards.

This sector involves activities to move goods and people, alongside the storage of products.