9.1 Context

This Chapter contains information on how and to what extent the Elia Group’s activities are associated with economic activities that qualify as environmentally sustainable and has been drafted in accordance with the Taxonomy Regulation of 18 June 20201, the Climate Delegated Act of 4 June 20212 and the Disclosure Delegated Act of 6 July 20213 .

The Taxonomy Regulation provides a definition of environmentally sustainable economic activities. To qualify as environmentally sustainable, an economic activity:

(i) shall contribute substantially to one or more of the six environmental objectives set out in articles 9 to 15 of the Taxonomy

Regulation and in the delegated acts referred to in the aforementioned articles, and

(ii) shall meet the specific technical screening criteria laid down in the delegated acts.

The Climate Delegated Act specifies the technical screening criteria (TSC) for the environmental objectives ‘climate change mitigation’ and ‘climate change adaptation’ which determine the conditions under which a specific economic activity qualifies as contributing substantially to ‘climate change mitigation’ and ‘climate change adaptation’.

As the Delegated Act specifying the remaining four environmental objectives will only be applicable as from 1 January 2023, Elia Group’s analysis is only based on the two environmental objectives covered by the Climate Delegated Act. The Disclosure Delegated Act specifies the content and presentation of the information to be disclosed by Elia Group pursuant to the Taxonomy Regulation, including the methodology to be used in order to comply with it. Pursuant to this Regulation Elia Group discloses hereunder the proportion of Taxonomy-eligible and Taxonomy non-eligible economic activities in the total turnover, capital expenditures (Capex) and operating expenditures (Opex) of the Elia group as well as the qualitative information relevant for this disclosure.

A taxonomy-eligible economic activity means an economic activity that is described in the Climate Delegated Act irrespective of whether that economic activity meets any or all of the technical screening criteria laid down in that Deletaged Regulation.

Further elaboration/clarifications on the sector and technical criteria supporting the sector in the future might change our current conclusion. If this would be the case Elia Group will update the results disclosed over 2021 accordingly.

This reporting 2021 should be considered as a transitionary year preparing Elia Group for detailed taxonomy alignment reporting over the year 2022.

We also refer to a white paper published in 2021 : see website : https://www.eliagroup.eu/en/publications#

1 Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 June 2020 on the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable investment, and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 (EUR-Lex - 32020R0852 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu)). 2 Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) C/2021/2800 final of 4 June 2021 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing the technical screening criteria for determining the conditions under which an economic activity qualifies as contributing substantially to climate change mitigation or climate change adaptation and for determining whether that economic activity causes no significant harm to any of the other environmental objectives (EUR-Lex - C(2021)2800 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu)). 3 Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2021/2178 of 6 July 2021 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2020/852 of the European Parliament and of the Council by specifying the content and presentation of information to be disclosed by undertakings subject to Articles 19a or 29a of Directive 2013/34/EU concerning environmentally sustainable economic activities, and specifying the methodology to comply with that disclosure obligation (EUR-Lex - 2021/2178 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu)).