About: Energy Roadmap 2050

Soil ‘completely underestimated’ in EU climate strategy

While climate change takes a toll on agriculture and land use contributes to warming the planet, soils still find little attention from policymakers in their climate strategies.

EU should aim for net-zero emissions by 2040 to fight global warming

Keeping global temperature rise to 1.5°C is critical - and still possible. But it means the EU should aim to reach net-zero emissions by 2040, writes Andrea Kohl.

Higher shares of renewables for higher levels of electrification

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.

Mayors urge EU to aim for net-zero emissions by 2050

The mayors of ten major European cities –including Paris, London, Milan and Barcelona – have issued a joint call for the EU to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement.

Spain to lead the energy transition in Europe?

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.

14 European countries call for stronger EU climate action

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.

Claude Turmes MEP: A net-zero emissions target by 2050 will be our red line

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.

German think-tank: EU’s 32% renewable energy target ’still unambitious’

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 needs to walk the talk on the Paris Climate Agreement

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.

How do we make a net-zero carbon economy the new normal?

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.

What the UN deal on shipping emissions means

Last week’s difficult deal on shipping emissions at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) brought some good news. The not-so-good news is that there is far too little acceptance of the need for immediate action, writes Bill Hemmings.

Brussels hails UN deal to halve shipping emissions by 2050

Over 170 countries reached agreement on Friday (13 April) to reduce CO2 emissions from shipping by “at least” 50% on 2008 levels by 2050, ending years of slow progress.

New climate strategy will set out a pathway to meet higher targets

Last week, EU leaders sent a clear message to the European Commission to ramp up its work to implement the Paris Agreement and accelerate the ongoing transition away from fossil fuels, writes Wendel Trio.

Breaking the glass ceiling of EU climate policy

The request from EU leaders to see an update of the European Commission's 2050 low-carbon roadmap mandates a higher level of ambition from Europe on meeting climate goals also in 2030, writes Brook Riley.

EU leaders take Brussels to task over 2050 low-carbon roadmap

EU leaders have urged the European Commission to come forward with a 2050 climate strategy “by the first quarter of 2019”, ending speculation over the timing of the proposal.

Parliament backs ‘net-zero’ carbon emissions by 2050

Green lawmakers have hailed a “great victory for the climate” as a proposal to bring down to zero the amount of greenhouse gases that can be emitted in the atmosphere by 2050 received unexpected backing from the European Parliament yesterday (17 January).

Think tank: Coal crisis, not climate policy, is forcing Polish energy overhaul

The unfolding crisis in the coal sector is leaving Poland with a looming power generation gap which is forcing decision-makers to reconsider the country’s energy mix. But politicians have until now delayed hard decisions and a transparent debate about it, says Joanna Maćkowiak Pandera.

EU to aim for 100% emission cuts in new ‘mid-century roadmap’

EXCLUSIVE / The European Commission is preparing an update of its low-carbon economy roadmap for 2050, acknowledging that the bloc’s current target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions at least 80% by mid-century are insufficient, EURACTIV.com has learned.

Energy and climate scenarios 2050

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The EU has set a long-term goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95% by 2050. But getting there will be a huge challenge that will require a transformation of our energy system.

Additional €20bn per year needed for French energy transition

The public sector will play an important but secondary role in financing the French energy transition, according to a new study by CDC Climat. The state-funded think tank believes an additional investment of 20 billion euro per year is needed to complete the energy transition. EURACTIV France reports. 

Energy budget cuts will hit EU’s low-carbon ambitions: Official

Cuts to the energy infrastructure package in the EU's new budget will increase costs and delays to the European Commission’s plans for a low carbon economy by 2050, Philip Lowe, the EU’s top energy civil servant said on Friday (8 February).

Polish energy firms intensify coal lobbying in Brussels

EXCLUSIVE: This year’s annual European coal industry conference in Brussels is being co-organised by the Central European Energy Partners (CEEP), which was founded by, and is mostly made up of, state-owned Polish energy firms.

Poland blocks EU’s zero-carbon plan

With European delegates preparing to push a low-carbon agenda at the Rio Earth Summit this week, coal-reliant Poland has prevented EU governments from speaking with a single voice in the bloc's debate on a low-carbon energy future.

Poland keeps vetoing its own future

By stubbornly rejecting the EU’s shared vision to move towards a green energy future, Poland is vetoing modernisation of its own economy and further isolating itself, argues Julia Michalak from Climate Action Network Europe.