Energy transition
EU agrees to let Spain, Portugal cap cost of gas for power
The European Commission has agreed to allow Spain and Portugal to place a temporary cap on reference prices for natural gas and coal used by power plants of €40 per megawatt-hour, their ministries in charge of energy and the environment said on Tuesday (26 April).
No green and digital transition without raw materials, EU warns
Europe's transition to a sustainable and digital society is only possible with a strategic approach to the raw materials needed to manufacture chips, electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies, the EU's internal market Commissioner Thierry Breton said on Monday (25 April).
EU ready to increase energy efficiency target to eliminate Russian gas
The European Commission is revising the economic assumptions behind its energy and climate laws package presented last year, saying sky-high gas prices fuelled by the war in Ukraine have strengthened the case for more ambitious energy efficiency goals.
Macron, up for re-election, promises €50 billion for green transition
French President Emmanuel Macron has promised an ecological transition plan to the tune of €50 billion if he is re-elected to lead the country in an election in April
10 measures the EU should adopt to reduce Russian gas dependency
The International Energy Agency has presented the EU with 10 measures to reduce its dependence on Russian natural gas within a year, without it having to abandon its environmental objectives set out in the Green Deal. EURACTIV France reports.
Oil firms’ climate claims are greenwashing, study concludes
Accusations of greenwashing against major oil companies that claim to be in transition to clean energy are well-founded, according to the most comprehensive study to date. EURACTIV's media partner, The Guardian, reports.
Germany to boost renewables in agriculture, link moorlands with solar panels
Renewable energies are to be used in German agriculture, as the agriculture, climate and environment ministries led by three Green ministers want moor areas - which are key for the climate - to be connected to agricultural photovoltaics. EURACTIV Germany reports.
Macron presents France’s long-term ‘nuclear-heavy’ energy plan
Multiplying solar energy capacity tenfold, deploying around fifty offshore wind farms and building six EPR 2 nuclear reactors. These are all part of France's long-term energy plan President Emmanuel Macron detailed on Thursday (10 February)
France to invest €5.6bn to decarbonise industry
A total of €5.6 billion will be allocated to decarbonising industry as part of the France 2030 plan, French Prime Minister Jean Castex announced on Friday (4 February) during a visit to the ArcelorMittal site in Dunkirk. EURACTIV France reports.
Europe needs a strategy for seasonal energy balancing
As the role of gas in the energy system evolves, the approach to meeting winter peak demand must also keep up, writes Nikos Tsafos. More fundamentally, someone needs to be responsible for supply security, he argues.
Austria gears up to fight EU ‘green’ nuclear energy plan
As the EU moves to label energy from nuclear power and natural gas as "green" investments, Austria is gearing up to fight this, including with a legal complaint.
Germany’s Altmaier: Economy ministry is ‘something again’
After four years at the helm of the federal economy and energy ministry, a coal phase-out and a pandemic, Peter Altmaier passes the torch to Greens co-leader Robert Habeck, who will chair the new 'super-ministry' of energy, economy and now also climate protection
Down in a hole: Bosnia miners fear green revolution
For years, life in Bosnia's Breza revolved around its coal mine, but the global shift from fossil fuels to renewables threatens the industry that was once the pride of communist Yugoslavia.
Austria ready to sue EU over nuclear’s inclusion in green finance taxonomy
Austria’s energy and climate minister Leonore Gewessler told EURACTIV in an exclusive interview that her country was ready to go to court if the EU decides to include nuclear power into the bloc's taxonomy on sustainable finance.
EU climate and infrastructure agency eyes end of fossil fuel projects
The director of CINEA, a recently-established EU agency managing €55 billion in EU funding for clean energy and transport, told EURACTIV about the challenge of ending fossil fuel projects entirely, saying coal and natural gas assets “are not simply going to go away” and need to be managed during the transition.
The Brief, powered by APPLiA — Stars align for nuclear
The current energy price spike is something of a storm. But it is also wind in the sails of nuclear energy in Europe, after many years of being given the cold shoulder.
The Brief, powered by APPLiA — Energising the EU bashing
The recent surge of electricity and gas prices to record heights across Europe has a huge potential for EU-bashing in member states, something the EU institutions should try to avert — if they can.
Countries are wasting money on energy sources they already know are history
With many countries facing an emerging fuel price crisis, the world has received a stark reminder of how important energy is to our everyday lives, and also how important government decisions are in keeping us well served, writes Maria Mendiluce.
Green policies not to blame for energy price surge, IEA says
Clean energy policies are not to blame for recent spikes in gas and electricity prices, and the soaring prices should not derail Europe's green transition, International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol said on Monday (27 September).
Critics say French state aid scheme will crush citizen energy projects
The European Commission has given the green light to a new French state aid scheme worth €5.7 billion aimed at supporting the production of electricity from small solar installations on buildings. But because the scheme cannot be coupled with other local and regional funding schemes, citizen solar panel projects will probably grind to a halt. EURACTIV France reports.
Sustainable living space in a world of limits: a need for dialogue
Challenges to ecological and social sustainability require us to integrate limits to resource consumption into all areas, including residential space, write Doris Fuchs, Sylvia Lorek, Pia Mamut and Nils Blossey.
Greek fires: Blaming climate change is only the start, phasing out fossil fuels is the rest
If Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is to help save Greece – and the planet – from the climate emergency, the changes his government must make are dramatic, writes Jonathan Gant.
It’s crunch time for France’s tumultuous renewable energy debate
As the debate on renewable energies and nuclear rages across France, nuclear proponents, environmentalists, scientists and politicians will have to set aside their differences in order to advance the energy transition. EURACTIV France reports.