Czech presidency proposes fossil-fuel tax compromise

But Síkela also warned plans must be "fair and socially-acceptable even for the most vulnerable citizens."

In a draft document which will form the basis for Friday's negotiations, seen by EUobserver, the Czech presidency proposed a compromise that would reduce a plan to claw back fossil-fuel companies' profits.

In the original plan by the EU Commission put forward two weeks ago, fossil-fuel extractors would be asked to return 33 percent of taxable surplus profits for the 2022 fiscal year.

Profits 20-percent higher than the average profit of the last three years would qualify as "excessive".

The Czech presidency has now proposed extending the period back another year to 1 January 2018, which would increase the average profit for most companies and thus in turn reduce the amount liable for "solidarity" taxation.

Fossil-fuel criticism

Fossil fuel companies, including TotalEnergies, and oil and gas lobbyist FuelsEurope have pushed back against the original proposal because relatively meagre profits during the Covid-19 period skewed the calculation downwards they argued, making current profits seem higher.

In a September position paper, the Spanish petrochemical giant Repsol also noted the tax would be "counterproductive" for new energy investments.

According to Fitch credit-ratings agency, Repsol is one of the companies most affected by the tax.

But it dispelled the notion EU tax plans will hamper the strong performance of oil and gas companies and enured all companies affected by the windfall tax will keep generating a "healthy cash flow" due to high energy prices.

Nonetheless, Repsol CEO Josu Jon Imaz recently described the windfall tax as "discriminatory."

In a sponsored interview published by Politico on Monday, Imaz said Europe was engaged in an "ideological transition, not a scientific one," adding that it needed to prioritise "security of supply."

More leeway

The new Czech compromise also gives countries more leeway to select the hours at which electricity consumption has to be reduced, as long as the overall consumption reduction remains 10 percent.

The commission had also proposed a revenue cap on all power plants generating more than 20-kilowatt hours. This has now been increased to 1,000 kilowatts, which would exclude more generators from the limit.

Demand-reduction targets and revenue caps on power generators will not be mandatory in so-called "outermost regions" not connected to the EU electricity grid, including Cyprus and Malta.

Member states will debate the Czech proposal on Friday.