Energy transition Archives

An integrated electricity market, with more grid interconnections and storage solutions “of all types” are at the centre of EU plans to build a more resilient electricity system able to deal with growing shares of variable wind and solar power.

16 coal plants in the Western Balkans pollute as much as the entire EU fleet of 250 units, causing sickness and deaths across the continent. It’s high time to take action, write Viola von Cramon and Petros Kokkalis.

Eastern EU countries, backed by trade unions, are putting pressure on EU leaders to come up with “fresh money” to support the energy transition in coal-dependent regions as part of a Green Deal due to be unveiled this week.

While visiting Paris, American economist Jeremy Rifkin talked to EURACTIV France about his hopes for the new European Commission's Green Deal, while calling for a climate narrative that inspires real change across society.

The French insurance company AXA has announced its own plan to help phase out coal production in Europe by 2030, under which it would no longer be insuring companies that are too dependent on fossil fuels. According to NGOs, this plan has "no blind spots". EURACTIV France reports.

Industry, agriculture and transport were asked to decrease air pollution at a high-level EU forum in Slovakia on clean air but the responsible ministers and new Commissioners were absent from the Bratislava event.

Disagreement on the inclusion of nuclear power in the EU’s upcoming green finance taxonomy has revived long-standing divisions between France and Germany over the energy transition. EURACTIV France reports.

The European Union continues to lag behind in terms of ‘green’ investment compared with China and the US, the EIB warned on Tuesday (26 November). The lender said that financing should increase by one-third to achieve a net-zero emissions economy by 2050.

The European economy is undergoing a rapid transition, with digital technology and climate change needs set to transform normal commerce. Is the EU’s single market flexible enough to handle the change?

Electricity production from coal is on track to fall by around 3% globally in 2019 – the largest drop on record – with Western European countries leading the charge, according to fresh data published on Monday (25 November).

Proposals to introduce a minimum distance of 1,000 metres between wind turbines and buildings have attracted fierce criticism from the German environment ministry, which said the draft new rules would derail the country's plan to boost renewable energy by 2030. EURACTIV Germany reports.

The world’s nations are on track to produce more than twice as much coal, oil and gas as can be burned by 2030 while restricting rise in the global temperature to 1.5C, analysis shows. EURACTIV's media partner, The Guardian, reports.

Under a scenario in which the EU meets its Paris Agreement climate targets, gas will be a transition fuel and offshore wind will dominate by 2050, according to a World Energy Outlook forecast from the International Energy Agency.

‘Sector coupling’, the integration of energy end-use and supply sectors, could potentially reduce the costs of decarbonisation and improve energy efficiency, in line with the EU's transformation towards a low-carbon economy as detailed in the 2050 long-term strategy.

At a Berlin conference to prepare for the UN's annual climate summit (COP25), Environment Minister Svenja Schulze and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas stressed the EU's responsibility in closing the Paris Climate Agreement's remaining gaps, particularly by raising the targets at EU level. EURACTIV Germany reports.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) decided on Thursday (14 November) to end financial support for fossil fuels from 2021, after marathon talks ended in a compromise that has been hailed as “a significant victory” for green policies.

The European Investment Bank will decide on Thursday (14 November) whether or not to purge its loan books of fossil fuel projects. All signs point to the EU lender striking a compromise with Germany and Italy which want more leeway for new gas projects.

The European Parliament's transport committee head, Karima Delli (Greens), spoke about the need to completely overhaul the transport industry to combat climate change, the next transport Commissioner and France's pick for EU internal market chief, in an interview with EURACTIV Slovakia.

The world's largest oil and gas companies must cut combined production by 35% by 2040 if nations are the meet the collective ambitions of the Paris Agreement and limit global warming to below 2C, a new report from Carbon Tracker has found. EURACTIV's media partner edie.net reports.

The EU says it wants to get out of fossil fuels and become climate neutral as soon as possible. But the European Commission's latest list of energy projects eligible for EU funding nevertheless includes 32 gas projects, including the construction of new LNG terminals, EURACTIV Germany reports.

Increasing environmental regulations and fierce competition from renewable energies are increasingly making coal-fired power operate at a loss. According to a British think tank, coal-fired power plants are losing billions of euros every year, but energy companies say this is nonsense. EURACTIV Germany reports.

In 2017, 263,883 people were employed in the environmental sector in Germany, which was about 12,600 more than in the previous year. Although this means that the amount of so-called "green jobs" saw a slight rise in Germany, the stagnating wind industry continues to hamper growth. EURACTIV Germany reports.