The new regulatory reality in the EU: to what extent will the two Omnibus packages and the Clean Industrial Deal change the green rules of the game?

In their latest report, Bank Pekao S.A. experts take a closer look at the details of the EU's latest green regulation plans, also outlining their possible effects on companies and the horizon for further legislative and strategic action in this area.

On February 26, 2025, the European Commission published wide-ranging proposals aimed at simultaneously increasing the competitiveness of European industry and simplifying EU sustainability regulations.

The European Green Deal in a new guise

The European Union has been chalking up ambitious climate policies for years, but economic reality is no longer keeping up with the ideals. Recent years have shown that tightening environmental requirements can affect the competitiveness of EU industry. In public opinion, but also in expert circles, a broad debate has begun about the reorientation of the EU regulator's previous actions in the ESG area, which is further stimulated by the dynamic geopolitical changes taking place. In response, the European Commission has published the Omnibus I and II and Clean Industrial Deal packages, which represent the beginning of a path toward a greater balance between climate ambitions and the European economy's ability to compete in the global market.

Economic background: why the course correction?

The European Commission's new proposals are a clear signal that the Union wants to reconcile its ambitious climate goals with the need to ensure affordable energy prices, a strong industrial European 

Omnibus packages: less bureaucracy, more flexibility

The primary goal of the Omnibus package series is to reduce administrative burdens by 25% for large companies and as much as 35% for SMEs, while maintaining high environmental standards. This is the first step toward deregulating ESG policies. Their main thrusts include: a reduction in reporting requirements (including a dramatic drop in the number of companies subject to mandatory reporting), a significant reduction in bureaucracy for SMEs (the introduction of a simplified voluntary standard), and changes to the CBAM border tax mechanism (exempting smaller importers - who make up the vast majority, but account for a marginal portion of total emissions). The proposed regulatory modifications are intended to reduce the complexity of EU requirements for all companies, especially SMEs and small mid-caps, focus the regulatory framework on the largest companies, which have a much greater impact on the climate and the environment, while allowing companies better access to sustainable financing for a clean transition.

EU Clean Industrial Deal: green transformation in the service of competitiveness

The overarching goal of the Clean Industrial Deal strategic initiative and the related “Action Plan for Affordable Energy” is, in turn, to make decarbonization a driving force for industry in the EU. Among other things, the CID envisions additional investments of more than €100 billion to support the development of clean technologies, decarbonize energy-intensive sectors (such as the steel, metal and chemical industries), and give a greater boost to the development of a closed-loop economy. Much attention is also being paid to creating mechanisms to lower energy costs for industry, which for many of its branches would be an important factor in improving competitiveness. 

You can read more about this in the report itself, “The new regulatory reality in the EU: to what extent will the two Omnibus packages and the Clean Industrial Deal change the green rules of the game?”. The material, authored by Macroeconomic Analysis Department experts Ewa Kurek and Krzysztof Mrówczyński, was prepared in cooperation with Piotr Kowalik, ESG manager at Pekao Investment Banking, and Aleksandra Sapiejewska and Adam Błasiak, experts from the Corporate Banking Strategy and Development Department at Bank Pekao S.A.