A new energy efficiency target for 2030 has long been thought dead, but the EU’s energy commissioner now says such a target would be ‘appropriate’.
Günther Oettinger, the European commissioner for energy, has signalled that the Commission intends to put forward a binding target for energy efficiency for 2030 in September, contrary to most expectations.
Asked about the efficiency target at a press conference yesterday unveiling a new energy security roadmap, Oettinger said “it would be appropriate to propose a binding energy efficiency target”.
The EU currently has three climate and energy targets for 2020 – a 20% emissions reduction from 1990 levels, a 20% share of renewable energy in the EU’s energy mix and a 20% increase in energy efficiency. While the first two come with binding national obligations, the 2020 energy efficiency target is non-binding on member states.
In 2012 the EU was only able to agree on energy efficiency legislation to implement the target by heavily watering it down. Member states were not enthusiastic about signing up to any obligations, and the legislation as adopted will not get the EU to it’s 20% target by 2020. This lack of enthusiasm made many observers expect that the Commission would not put forward a new target for 2030 – not even an indicative one.
In January the Commission put forward a new proposal for a 40% emissions reduction by 2030. But it opted not to renew the binding renewable energy target, instead only setting a non-binding EU goal of at least 27% share by 2030. The Commission held off on putting forward a proposal for efficiency until a review of the energy efficiency legislation is conducted this summer.
Oettinger would not say what level target the Commission is considering, and he also did not specify whether the target would be binding on EU or national level. The proposal is expected in September. The Commissioner also stressed efficiency as party of the energy security roadmap, as a way of reducing energy dependence on Russia.
The Coalition for Energy Savings, a campaign group that lobbies for energy efficiency, welcomed the development. In a letter sent to member states ahead of the informal energy council earlier this month, the group wrote that “energy efficiency must be the first priority of the EU’s energy dependency strategy.”
“Europe has great energy efficiency potential – 41% final energy savings potential by 2030 – equivalent to the EU’s total current gas imports from Russia,” the letter stated. “Moreover, it’s the EU Member States with the highest gas imports that have the poorest plans to tackle energy efficiency. Investing in the EU’s full energy efficiency potential would save the EU over €200 billion net savings per year by 2020, leading to €250 billion per year by 2030.”
Much of this potential is from buildings, which account for 40% of the EU’s energy consumption.
However member states are expected to be very wary of any binding efficiency target for 2030. The UK has already said it is adamantly opposed to any efficiency target because it would not give enough flexibility. Germany has not yet decided whether to support an efficiency target.
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