Christoph Kellermann, Lun Zhou and Simon Göss at Energy Brainpool explain how the EU’s new “Fit for 55” proposals, released in July, will impact the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), hailed as one of the most effective ways of reducing emissions. The authors cover the changes to the existing ETS, the planned new ETS for road transport and buildings, the controversial Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), and the new CO2 standards for … [Read more...]
Central and Eastern Europe’s buildings renovation plans fall far short of 55% emissions cuts
There are big decarbonisation gains to be had in a renovation wave in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) precisely because their building stock is very energy-inefficient, explains Christophe Jost at CEE Bankwatch. But Bankwatch's report on eight national plans - Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Poland, Romania and Slovakia – reveals weaknesses in scale, funding, strategy and policy. Many are planning to comply with only the former 40% … [Read more...]
EU: Slow-moving CO2 targets for cars put EV battery boom at risk
Europe’s battery manufacturers are positioning themselves to be global leaders. Their project pipeline will be enough to power a new European car fleet that is 75% battery-electric by 2030. That’s 38 European gigafactories by 2030 (fully funded, part-funded and proposed), €39.5 billion worth in investments, creating 44,000 direct factory jobs. But existing CO2 emissions cut targets imposed on car manufacturers – a leading driver of demand for … [Read more...]
‘Fit for 55’ should prioritise decarbonisation of laggards: buildings, transport, industry, agriculture
Today’s long-awaited "Fit for 55" legislative package from the European Commission will trigger intense and difficult negotiations that will last two years, says Nicolas Berghmans at IDDRI. Its scope is wide and inevitably interconnected. The twelve legislative proposals include adjustments to existing measures (renewable energy, energy efficiency, carbon market/EU ETS, energy taxation, climate effort sharing between Member States/ESR, land use … [Read more...]
New rules for EU green bonds to raise €350bn/yr, but no decision on nuclear and gas
The EU needs €350bn/year from private investors to fill the Green Deal’s funding gap. The rules for the new green bonds that companies can issue to raise money are supposed to set a “gold standard”, ensure there’s no greenwashing, and make Europe the best place to invest your money sustainably. Benjamin Wehrmann at CLEW summarises the new strategy that was presented on 6th July, and has gathered reactions. Particular attention is paid to … [Read more...]
Buildings Retrofits: inaccurate efficiency ratings are going to waste budget
Buildings renovations are going to be expensive, and complicated to roll out. Accurately predicting how much energy a building actually wastes will make that process easier and cheaper. EPC ratings are used to categorise the energy efficiency of homes. But Freya Wise at The Open University quotes research in Europe, along with her own investigations in the UK, to show that a lot of older buildings waste less energy than the standard estimates are … [Read more...]
Biden’s major report on critical minerals supply: domestic mining + processing, innovation, EVs, global allies + more
In June, The White House issued its 250-page report on the global critical minerals supply chain, and how the U.S. can ensure continued supply as well as build up its own mining and manufacturing base. It is the fullest picture so far of how the U.S. is evaluating mineral access and supply chain resilience, says Reed Blakemore at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. Here he reviews the report, in particular the section on energy which … [Read more...]
Land Use and Forestry: existing LULUCF rules allow EU’s carbon sink to decrease. Change them
The EU’s current Regulations for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) allow the region’s carbon sink to decrease, explains Ulriikka Aarnio at CAN Europe. It’s due to exclusions and a lack of transparency and proper accounting for emissions. As a result, the EU’s carbon sink has already decreased significantly in the last few years, extracting only 265 Mt of CO2 in 2019. Different activities both emit and absorb carbon. 2019 saw 135 Mt … [Read more...]
EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism lacks the detail to drive industry’s relocation near clean energy
High emissions industries should be relocated to where the cheap clean energy is. So long as the shipping costs (in terms of price and emissions) aren’t prohibitively high, those locations can be anywhere in the world. To get the calculations right, Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms (accounting for the emissions of imported goods) must be harmonised internationally. They must also – crucially – count all relevant emissions. But the EU’s draft … [Read more...]
The EU’s “Fit for 55” package: a primer on the EU ETS and other main policy levers
On July 14 the European Commission will present the much awaited “Fit for 55” legislative package. Lara Dombrowski and Simon Göss at Energy Brainpool have written a very useful primer on what’s at stake for the EU ETS, along with a summary of the other main policy levers that will be decided upon. The authors describe the EU ETS as the central instrument for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. It caps emissions for 10,000 power sector, industrial … [Read more...]
Case study Italy: Optimising emissions cuts means we’ll need “grey” and “blue” Hydrogen too
Europe is committing to hydrogen. The ideal is “green” hydrogen, produced from renewable energy alone. Carlo Stagnaro at Istituto Bruno Leoni analyses emissions and costs in Italy to make the case for policy-makers to consider including “grey” and “blue” hydrogen in their strategies too. Because grids are far from green today, a new wind and solar plant will reduce more emissions by feeding the grid than by making hydrogen. “Grey” hydrogen, … [Read more...]
What patents tell us: which countries, what sectors, are the clean energy innovators?
Today’s solutions cannot give us a successful transition on their own. That’s why the innovations coming down the pipeline are so important. One way to measure what, and who, is innovating is to look at the number of patents being filed for low carbon energy (LCE), explains Sean Fleming writing for the World Economic Forum. He summarises the latest report from the European Patent Office and the IEA, “Patents and the energy transition: Global … [Read more...]
Fit for 55: Does squeeze on gas make coal exit harder? Event summary + video
On May 18, 2021, Energy Post hosted an expert panel with the European Commission, E3G, CERRE and PKEE (the Polish Electricity Association, who also sponsored the discussion). It looked at some of the key EU support mechanisms offered to countries/companies transitioning away from coal, including the EU ETS' Modernisation Fund, the Just Transition Fund  and also how State Aid Guidelines (EEAG) contribute. We asked Stefaan Vergote (Senior Advisor … [Read more...]
EU’s new 15% emissions cut for EVs looks like 2% thanks to four “allowances”
EU regulations for reducing car emissions have been an important driver for getting European manufacturers to go electric and seek a leading position globally. But new rules will slow that progress, according to Transport & Environment (T&E). What look like rules that require a 15% reduction in COâ‚‚ emissions from new cars from 2025 can mean a drop of as little as 2%, thanks to four “allowances”. Heavier average car weight (and electric … [Read more...]
18 energy transition scenarios to watch: where they agree and disagree
A wide range of regions, nations and respected organisations have created net-zero strategies and pathways, but on what do they agree and disagree? Dolf Gielen, Asami Miketa, Ricardo Gorini and Pablo Carvajal at IRENA have done a meta-analysis of 18 recent energy transition scenarios to find out. There is consensus over the main strategies: renewable power generation, and the direct and indirect electrification of end-use sectors – these account … [Read more...]
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