Publications Archive

The share of renewable energy in overall EU energy consumption is to increase to 27% by 2030. This is set out in the EU Commission’s Proposal for a Directive to promote energy from renewable sources (“renewables”) post-2021. In cep’s view, the Proposal allows Member States too much scope for developing inefficient and anti-competitive renewables support schemes.

The EU Commission wants to ensure that the energy efficiency of buildings is further increased. The proposed amendment to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive is intended to remove "cumbersome" provisions and speed up the energy-related renovation of existing buildings. In cep's view, linking financial support for building renovation to the energy savings achieved, is an improvement on the status quo.

The Energy Efficiency Directive of 2012 is to be amended. A stricter, and now also binding, energy savings target of 30% by 2030 will apply in the EU. In order to achieve this target, the Member States will be subject to detailed energy savings obligations. Thus, they will also have to ensure that the energy consumption of end customers falls by 1.5% per year post 2020.

The EU Commission will allocate Member States with national targets for reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) in sectors not subject to EU emissions trading (ETS) (e.g. transport and agriculture). It also proposes flexibility options which Member States can use to achieve their national targets.

In its Communication, the Commission sets out how heating and cooling can be made more efficient in the EU. In cep's view, the proposed rules on energy efficiency and the use of renewables are unsuitable for reducing CO₂ emissions in a targeted and cost-effective way. Instead, all forms of heating and cooling should be included in the EU Emissions Trading System.

The EU Commission wants to facilitate the cross-border use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and gas storage facilities in order to complete the internal gas market and increase security of supply. For this purpose, cross-border gas infrastructure will be built and cooperation with third countries improved in order to remove barriers to global trade in LNG. In cep's view, this will increase security of supply for Member States that do not have their own LNG terminals and gas storage facilities.

In future, the European Commission wants to ensure the compatibility of intergovernmental agreements with EU law by way of "ex-ante checks" on energy agreements between EU members and third countries. In cep's view, however, this would constitute drastic intervention in the sovereignty of the Member States.

Disruption to the gas supply in the EU should be prevented by better regional coordination. To achieve this, Member States would, under plans put forward by the EU Commission, have to draw up binding risk assessments and develop preventive action and emergency plans, no longer nationally, but jointly with other countries in their region.

The current support for electricity generation by way of photovoltaics is failing to meet the European Union's climate and energy policy targets: It is not resulting in a reduction in carbon dioxide or in lower electricity prices. Neither has security of supply increased. In addition, it has not succeeded in developing an internationally competitive industry for the manufacture of photovoltaic modules in the EU.

The strategic plan to support energy technology (SET Plan) is to be refocussed on the priorities of the Energy Union. The EU Commission criticises the existing SET Plan for the fact that its technology-specific research support is failing to take sufficient account of the synergies between the various energy technologies. It therefore wants to replace this "technology-specific approach" with an "energy system approach".