According to modelling from LUT University, 45% renewables in the final energy mix in 2030 is the most cost-efficient way to reach the EU’s 55% greenhouse gas emissions reduction target, and would put the continent on track to deliver on the 1.5° Paris Agreement scenario.
At a relaunch event in Brussels, which featured a keynote addresses from Hildegard Bentele MEP, and Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Director-General of DG ENER, campaign signatories gathered to underline the importance of a 45% renewable target in the current geopolitical and economic context. The event, co-organised by SolaRPower Europe and European Aluminium and attended by over 300 participants, follows the European Commission’s REPowerEU proposals in May 2022, when the 45% target was put forward to alleviate Europe’s dependency on Russian gas.
In a video message shown during the event, DG ENER Director-General, Ditte Juul Jørgensen, said: “We are committed to eliminating our dependence on Russian fossil fuels as quickly as we can. Recent events have confirmed that renewables are not only beneficial for providing more sustainable energy, but they also play a role in making our energy supply more affordable and more secure across the EU. We need to move even faster, and that is why we have proposed that we increase our European 2030 renewables target to at least 45%.”
As the French Presidency of the Council of the EU came to an end in June 2022, the Council was only able to adopt a 40% renewables target. Later this month, on Tuesday 13 September, the European Parliament is expected to adopt a position on 45% renewables at the Strasbourg plenary session, however, paving the way for a higher political commitment to the faster phase-out of fossil-fuel dependency.
Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe, said: “We are in times of crisis: the Russian war in Ukraine and astronomical energy prices felt across Europe demonstrates that renewable energy is security and fossil fuel dependency is vulnerability. The European Commission and Parliament have already adopted, or will soon adopt, a 45% goal for Europe for 2030. This winter, it is crucial that European governments make the right choice and support a 45% renewable target for our people, security, and climate.”
Paul Voss, Director General of European Aluminium, said: “If we are serious about ending Europe’s third-country dependencies and reaching the 45% RES target, we must boost the domestic manufacturing of renewable energy technologies and their upstream supply chains. European decision makers must set the course for an affordable and secure green energy supply for the long-term now. For that, we also need a reliable and responsibly managed supply of strategic raw materials like aluminium. Without, the green energy transition and achieving the EU’s climate-neutrality objective will not be possible.”
