The EU has launched a Green Paper consultation to help develop the framework for the 2030 energy and climate change policies. The paper asks
- · What lessons can be learnt from the 2020 framework?
- Which targets for 2030 will be the most effective for driving the objectives and at what level should they be applied.
- How can targets better reflect the economic viability and the changing maturity of technologies?
- How can the energy system best contribute to EU competitiveness?
- What are the specific drivers in observed trends in energy costs and to what extent can the EU influence them?
- How can the different capacities of various member states be taken into account?
As Europe’s dependence on fossil fuels grows so do the energy bills. The sooner targets are set the more certainty companies will be given.
Germany – Europe’s largest economy – decided to abandon extending the life of its nuclear plants after the 2011 Fukushima disaster. The renewable energy additions have resulted in increased bills and increasingly intermittent supply, before the elections in September there is plans for a new policy to keep the country’s for enthusiasm for environmentalism alive.
There was disappointment that the 2030 Green Paper didn’t address the fact that heat savings could reduce carbon emissions as heat is responsible for around 45% of the continent’s consumption. The potential for utilizing waste heat is great and by not including this in the Green Paper energy savings may have been missed out on.
The Green Paper consultation will continue until 2nd July and the Commission plans to decide on the framework for the 2030 policies by the end of this year.
