PURPOSE: to establish a common framework for the promotion of energy from renewable sources.
PROPOSED ACT: Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council
BACKGROUND: on 10 January 2007, the Commission adopted an integrated package of measures in the area of energy and climate change, inviting the Council and the European Parliament to approve:
- an EU commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 20% by 2020 compared to 1990 levels, as well as the aim for a 30% reduction by 2020, subject to the conclusion of an international agreement on climate change;
- a binding target for the EU of a 20% share of renewable energy sources in energy consumption by 2020, and a 10% target for biofuels.
This strategy was approved by the European Parliament and EU leaders during the March 2007 European Council. The European Council invited the Commission to present concrete proposals, particularly on the provisions for sharing the effort between Member States to achieve this objective.
The series of measures here presented is the response to this invitation. It includes a proposed set of key interdependent measures to be taken, as outlined below:
- a proposal for a directive amending Directive 2003/87/EC, to improve and extend the European Union Greenhouse Gas Emission Trading Scheme (see COD/2008/0013);
- a proposal for a decision on the effort to be made by Member States to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, in order to respect the Community’s commitments to reduce these emissions by 2020 (see COD/2008/0014);
- a proposal for a directive aiming to promote renewable energy (the subject of this document).
Included among the proposals that make up this set of measures are: a proposal for a regulatory framework on carbon capture and storage (see COD/2008/0015); a communication on the demonstration of carbon capture and storage; and a new Community framework on State aid in the area of the environment.
CONTENT: the Community has long recognised the need to further promote renewable energy. The European Parliament noted in its Resolution on climate change (see RSP/2006/2680) that renewable energy sources and energy efficient technologies play an important role in terms of the EU’s overall strategy on climate change. The Parliament supported the proposal of a binding target to increase the level of renewable energy in the EU energy mix to 20% by 2020. Furthermore, in its Resolution on the Roadmap for Renewable Energy in Europe (see INI/2007/2090), the European Parliament called on the Commission to present by the end of 2007 a proposal for a renewable energy legislative framework.
The proposed Directive lays down the principles according to which Member States need to ensure that the share of renewable energy in the EU final energy consumption reaches at least 20% by 2020, and establishes national overall targets for each Member State .
Three sectors are concerned in renewable energy: electricity, heating and cooling and transport. The overall approach is for Member States to retain discretion as to the mix of these sectors in reaching their national target. However, it is proposed that each Member State shall achieve at least a 10% share of renewable energy (primarily biofuels) in the transport sector by 2020. This is done for the following reasons:
- the transport sector is the sector presenting the most rapid increase in greenhouse gas emissions of all sectors of the economy;
- biofuels tackle the oil dependence of the transport sector, which is one of the most serious problems of insecurity in energy supply that the EU faces;
- biofuels are currently more expensive to produce than other forms of renewable energy, which might mean that they would hardly be developed without a specific requirement.
Each Member State will present a national action plan explaining how the country plans to achieve its objectives, thus enabling effective monitoring of progress made.
The proposal lays down rules relating to guarantees of origin, administrative procedures and electricity grid connections in relation to energy from renewable sources.
Specifically for biofuels and other bioliquids, the Directive sets up a system to guarantee the environmental sustainability of the policy, ensuring inter alia that the biofuels counting towards the targets achieve a minimum level of greenhouse gas savings.