Energy transition Archives

A deep decarbonisation of the European economy is doable, but it will rely heavily on an increased uptake of electricity – even if the challenges are very different across the individual use sectors, writes Kristian Ruby.

An upcoming EU-China summit in Beijing will be yet another moment for both economies to show leadership on climate action, following the United States' surrender of influence under Donald Trump, writes Professor Zou Ji.

The ongoing reform of "capacity markets" for electricity, which remunerate power plants for remaining on standby in case of demand peak, should be technologically neutral in order to allow disruptive technologies like digitalisation and blockchain to develop, argue energy experts from across Europe.

With its updated Renewable Energy Directive, the EU has sent a clear signal that citizens and communities are key to the energy transition’s success. The next step is to empower these groups to access the market and use their untapped potential, writes Emily Rochon.

Poland’s upper house of parliament approved an amendment to the country's renewable energy law on Friday (29 June) meant to remove obstacles to green energy investment and help Warsaw meet EU targets.

The creation of the new ministry for ecological transition in Spain brings fresh air not only at the national level but also at the EU level as Spain can give a push in the fight against climate change, writes Ana Barreira.

A group of European countries known as the “Green Growth Group” have called on the European Commission to update the EU’s pledge at the United Nation’s next annual climate meeting in December this year, and chart a pathway consistent with a 1.5°C global warming scenario by 2050.

Negotiators from the European Commission, Parliament and Council struck a deal on the energy union governance regulation after an all-night session where they agreed to aim for a net-zero carbon economy "as early as possible," with a carbon budget and national strategies for 2050.

At a meeting of climate ministers in Berlin on Tuesday (19 June), the German chancellor stressed the importance of re-training to help people take part in a greener economy.

While some countries like the United Kingdom quit brown coal some time ago, Germany is still struggling. A new commission is meant to sketch out structural changes but the Bundesrepublik is no longer a pioneer of climate protection, one political scientist told  EURACTIV Germany

EU negotiators finally signed off on new energy efficiency rules Tuesday evening (19 June), as Bulgaria's EU Presidency wrapped up another clean energy file. But some of the concessions made by MEPs have already provoked criticism.

EU negotiators meet once again this week for what promises to be final talks on two crucial energy files on energy governance and energy efficiency. Follow our liveblog for the latest developments, as well as to catch up on what has happened so far.

Any country resisting an EU-wide objective to reduce emissions to net-zero by mid-century is essentially “in the same camp as Mr. Trump” when it comes to climate change, says Claude Turmes, the lead European Parliament negotiator on the Energy Union governance proposal.

The 32% renewable energy target agreed by EU negotiators last week is still “much lower” than what would be needed to reach the Paris goals on climate change, argue experts at the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Germany.

The EU’s Energy Union Governance Regulation is not an EU-level invention or a bureaucratic imposition from Brussels. Instead, it is to a large extent an attempt to translate what several of the EU’s individual member states are already doing on climate and energy policy, writes Lola Vallejo.

Most European nations are set to miss their carbon reduction pledges made as part of the Paris Agreement, according to a new ranking of “good”, “bad” and “ugly” countries published today (18 June) by Europe's leading NGO coalition on climate change.

Talks on renewable energy policy in Europe reached un unexpected breakthrough early this morning after negotiators from the European Parliament and  EU member states were able to reach a compromise on a 32% headline objective and a complete phase out of palm oil use in transport by 2030.

A unique coalition of businesses and investors representing over €21 trillion in assets have joined forces with local authorities and civil society groups to urge EU leaders to accelerate the transition to a zero-carbon economy in order to keep global warming below 2°C.

As the EU Talanoa Dialogue and the Petersburg Dialogue kicks off a busy month for EU climate action, Eliot Whittington explains why now is the time for the EU to show its colours on legislation currently under consideration and make a net-zero carbon economy the new normal.

Voters across Europe have lost faith in politics partly because of “unachievable targets” on renewable energy, said German Energy Minister Peter Altmaier, who rejected calls from a group of other EU countries to boost the share of renewables to 33-35% of the bloc’s energy mix by 2030.

The European Commission chose the Trencin region in Slovakia as a pilot for its new initiative to support the transition away from coal in Europe’s regions. Coal company HBP wants to take advantage of the EU initiative – while keeping coal mining in the region.

Public debate on energy efficiency has tended to focus on savings made by the end-user – whether in buildings or in consumer products like TV sets, lightbulbs, and vacuum cleaners, which have all grabbed headlines.

The Bulgarian Presidency of the EU has tabled fresh options for the bloc’s energy ministers who are meeting on Monday (11 June) to finalise their position on three laws that will shape Europe’s energy and climate policy until 2030.

After being postponed three times, Germany’s government has appointed the long-awaited commission which is to define a roadmap for the country’s coal phase-out. It will have a double mandate: to protect both the climate and jobs.