Renewable energy: EU has cost-effective potential to use more renewables

On Monday 19 February, Commissioner for Climate Action and Energy Miguel Arias Cañete and the Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) Adnan Amin will launch in Brussels a new report on renewable energy prospects in the European Union.

Prepared by the International Renewable Energy Agency, the report identifies cost-effective renewable energy options across all EU countries, sectors, and technologies, in order to meet – and even exceed – the proposed 27% renewables target for 2030. It also provides an open platform for EU countries to assess the impacts of their national renewable energy plans at an EU level, provides insights into the environmental and economic impacts of further deployment of renewables in the EU, and highlights the role that renewables could play in the long-term decarbonisation of the European energy system.

The report also shows that all individual EU countries have the potential to deploy more renewables cost effectively, especially by generating more solar and wind energy. Moreover, in the heating and cooling sector, which accounts for about half of the EU’s energy demand, more than two thirds of the renewables options identified in the report are cheaper than the conventional alternative. The report makes a number of recommendations aimed at helping the EU decarbonise its economy and limit global warming to well below 2°, in line with the Paris Agreement, as well as bringing substantial health benefits for citizens.

In its "Clean Energy for All Europeans" package the Commission made proposals to stimulate investment in the clean energy transition by putting energy efficiency first, achieving global leadership in renewable energies and providing a fair deal for consumers.