Member States European Union and MEPs reached an agreement on limiting consumption energy in the Union by 2030, mainly through building renovations and public sector efforts.

The text on “energy efficiency” was proposed by the European Commission in July 2021 as part of an ambitious program to Climate with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions within the Union by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990.

What does the agreement provide?

The agreement between the Member States’ negotiators and the European Parliament provides for a reduction in EU final energy consumption of at least 11.7%. in 2030 compared to the baseline set in 2020

“A rigorous monitoring and enforcement mechanism will be put in place to ensure that Member States are fulfilling their national obligations to achieve the European target,” the European Parliament said in a statement.

The target is up from the Commission’s proposal (9%) but is far from the 14.5% requested by the European Parliament to account for the energy shock caused by the war in Ukraine and limit Europe’s dependence on imported hydrocarbons.

“Good climate deal, bad for Putin”

“For the first time, we have a mandatory energy target. This is a big win, a good deal for the climate and a bad deal for Putin,” said Socialist MEP Nils Fuglsang, rapporteur for the text.

On average, between 2024 and 2030, each country should reduce its final energy consumption by about 1.5% compared to the projected path.

And efforts will have to be accelerated: annual energy savings will be set at 1.3% by the end of 2025 and gradually increase to 1.9% by the end of 2030, making the construction, industrial and transport sectors less energy intensive.

What about energy-intensive enterprises?

The most energy-intensive enterprises with an annual energy consumption of more than 85 terajoules must be equipped with an “energy management system” or be systematically audited.

High-energy IT data centers should be tested for their energy efficiency, with the potential to use the heat they generate to heat other buildings.

In each country, the public sector must reduce energy consumption by 1.9% per year.

Member States are required to renovate at least 3% of the total area of ​​public buildings annually at the national, as well as regional and local level, in order to transform them into “zero or near-zero energy buildings”.

The agreement also provides for the improvement of local heating and cooling plans in cities with more than 45,000 inhabitants, in particular by phasing out fossil fuels in new infrastructure.

^{Source: APE-MEB, AFP.}