The energy transition will hit the poor hardest unless it's balanced by a shift in taxation, says Christian Egenhofer. The EU needs to acknowledge this and get started by lowering taxes on electricity to achieve the EU’s carbon reduction goals at least cost, he argues.
In April, the Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 company initiated legal proceedings agains the EU under the Energy Charter Treaty. If an amicable solution cannot be found, the case will set an important precedent for EU energy policy, write Kim Talus and Leigh Hancher.
European gas storage sites have much to offer in the energy transition, providing a readily available platform to carry new low-carbon gases like hydrogen. What’s not clear yet is whether those gases can be produced in sufficient quantity to significantly cut carbon emissions.
The European Commission’s review of Britain’s capacity market for electricity will reveal whether the EU executive really believes the recast regulation on the internal electricity market is ever likely to be fully enforced, write Philip Baker and Michael Hogan.
The Italian gas authority has voiced alarm at a planned rise in transmission tariffs for gas coming from Germany, saying the reform will cost €300 million to Italian taxpayers. The EU said it stands ready to intervene.
The European Commission needs to tackle the abusive market practices of aluminium producing countries like China that rely on state aid and environmental dumping to erode the market share of European companies, writes Mario Conserva.
At a time when the EU strives to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, coal still represents more than half of electricity across much of the Western Balkans and other EU neighbouring countries, writes Janez Kopač. Making things worse, coal plants are intensively supported by Chinese and US capital, without active opposition of the EU, he says.
The European gas industry is on the cusp of a green revolution similar to the one that took place in the electricity sector, with a greater variety of low-carbon gases feeding into the grid at the local level, says Jean-Marc...
As the European Union turns the page on a series of clean energy laws focused on electricity, attention is now turning to decarbonisation in the gas sector, with an upcoming gas package expected in 2020. And the power sector intends to play a central role there too.
Energy consumption in Europe rose for the third consecutive year in 2017, pulling the EU further away from its 2020 energy efficiency objective, according to official figures published on Thursday (7 February).
A no deal departure from the EU in March would leave Britain without oversight of key energy and environment problems until at least 2021, a think-tank warned on Thursday (31 January). EURACTIV's media partner, Climate Home News, reports.
While other EU countries, such as Germany, announce plans for coal phase-out within the next 20 years in compliance with their Paris Agreement commitments, Greece’s future appears locked in carbon for decades to come, write Demetres Karavellas and Nikos Charalambides.
The volume of solar panels and electric cars connected to the grid is still manageable for now. But massive new load expected from electric vehicles in the coming years will require stepping up network digitalisation, warns Serge Colle.
Electric cars and rooftop solar panels are expected to hit mass markets in the coming years, all requiring smart meters installed in people’s homes. But EU countries are slow at deploying them, and industry voices are now calling on EU regulators to step in.
A recent agreement to reform Europe’s electricity market has enshrined into EU law the unprecedented right of consumers to produce, sell and share their own electricity in newly-defined “citizen energy communities”.
Bulgarian minister Temenuzhka Petkova has said her country preferred paying a multi-million euro fine rather than follow a Commission injunction. Such a reform, in her words, would have threatened the country's national security. EURACTIV checked the facts.
If the energy market fails to deliver affordable prices for those in a vulnerable situation, it should not trample people’s right to live a decent life. A way to limit harm is to avoid prices going too high, writes Monique Goyens.
As the European Commission unveiled its long-term vision for greenhouse gas reduction on Wednesday (28 November), a yellow cloud hung over the grand pronouncements.
Whilst wanting to protect regulated tariffs at all costs, France has committed itself to a coalition of the lowest bidders on climate issues, in particular with countries defending the coal industry, writes the ANODE.
Whether it’s for heating their swimming pools or to power their air conditioning systems and home appliances, regulated electricity prices “give the greatest potential benefit to richer households” who consume the largest amounts of energy, says Klaus-Dieter Borchard.
Electricity prices regulated by the government are commonplace in Europe, chiefly out of concern for vulnerable consumers. But they also undermine the adoption of innovative demand-response technologies, which are key to integrate higher shares of renewables and electric cars.
UPDATE: EU negotiators reached agreement Monday evening (12 November) on a legal framework for “citizen energy communities” in a deal solar PV manufacturers hailed as a victory for small-scale renewable energy production.
With growing shares of renewable energies added to the system, the dynamic pricing of electricity becomes even more important in order to provide flexibility on the demand side, says Pierre Tardieu. This is why regulated energy prices can only slow the pace of the energy transition, he argues.
The European Commission has renewed its push to phase out regulated electricity prices, arguing they distort the market and slow down the transition to clean energy. But faced with reluctance from EU countries, it has now tabled a compromise based on a common EU definition of energy poverty.
