When it comes to sustainable agriculture, energy-efficient solutions play a fundamental role. In this quest for sustainability, the emergence of solar irrigation (SI) is proving to be a game changer. The EU-funded SolAqua project, which concluded in September 2023, has made huge advances in overcoming barriers to the market uptake of SI in Europe and […]
Read MoreEnergy efficiency of buildings: MEPs adopt plans to decarbonise the sector
On Tuesday, MEPs adopted plans, already agreed upon with Council, to help reduce energy consumption and greenhouse-gas emissions from the buildings sector. The proposed revision of the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive aims to progressively reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy consumption in the EU building sector, and make it climate neutral by 2050. […]
Read MoreUnited and prepared against energy supply disruptions
Ministers held an exchange of views on the state of play of security of supply and preparations for winter 2024-2025. Among other things, they addressed ways to avoid, both individually and collectively, new price shocks and to strengthen energy security, while achieving the established targets on decarbonisation and on phasing out Russian fossil fuels. Different […]
Read MoreThe European Commission recommends that Member States continue to save gas in order to secure supply and stabilise markets
Gas savings by businesses and citizens across the EU have made an important contribution to tackling the energy crisis, spurred by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine two years ago. Collectively, the EU reduced gas demand by 18% between August 2022 and December 2023, saving around 101 billion cubic metres of gas. These efforts go above and beyond the 15% savings target which […]
Read MoreElectricity from renewable sources up to 41% in 2022
In 2022, renewable energy sources made up 41.2% of gross electricity consumption in the EU, 3.4 percentage points (pp) more than in 2021 (37.8%) and well ahead of other electricity-generation sources such as nuclear (less than 22%), gas (less than 20%) or coal (less than 17%). In total, renewable energy sources increased by 5.7% from […]
Read MoreBattery-only electric cars continued to increase in 2022
In 2022, the number of battery-only electric passenger cars in the EU countries almost reached 3.0 million, which is a +55% increase compared with 2021 (1.9 million). The highest annual rate of increase in battery-only electric passenger cars in the period 2013-2022 was noted between 2019 and 2020 (+85%), followed by the increase in 2021 […]
Read MoreCouncil and Parliament reach deal to Reform of electricity market design
The reform of the electricity market is the EU’s long-term response to the energy crisis experienced in 2022. Despite a high share of renewables in energy generation, high spikes in fossil fuel prices (especially gas) have caused a steep increase in electricity prices. This is due to the functioning of the EU electricity market, where the price of […]
Read MoreNew rules to boost energy efficiency in buildings across the EU
The Commission welcomes the provisional agreement reached between the European Parliament and the Council to reduce the emissions and energy use of buildings across the EU. The strengthened Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) will support the EU’s efforts to decarbonise buildings across the whole Union. This is an area in which the concrete impact of […]
Read MoreEU leads global initiative at COP28 to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency measures
At the World Climate Action Summit in Dubai, President Ursula von der Leyen launched the Global Pledge on Renewables and Energy Efficiency together with the COP28 Presidency and 118 countries. This initiative, first proposed by the Commission President at the Major Economies Forum in April, sets global targets to triple the installed capacity of renewable energy to at least 11 terawatts (TW) and […]
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