In its latest ‘State of Energy’ report, the EU has said it must cut greenhouse gas emissions much more quickly than it already is.
The EU reduced emissions by 33% since 1990, but it had promised to reduce emissions by 55% by 2030.
In the report, the Commision also said it had upped its energy efficiency targets to reduce final energy consumption by 11.7% in 2030. This will occur in conjunction with agreeing to a minimum share of 42.5% of renewable energy by 2030.
Speaking to The Guardian newspaper the EU’s new climate minister Wopke Hoekstra said “to fully achieve these targets the pace of emissions reductions needs to step up”.
The EU Commission also recently highlighted concerns around renewable infrastructure – particularly impacting wind power: “Last year, the EU achieved a record level of deployment for wind and solar, plus 47%. Sales of heat pumps and electric vehicles rose to unprecedented levels,” said Commissioner Kadri Simson.
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“Furthermore, our report on investments in clean technologies shows the EU is the second largest global investor in clean tech, despite the US Inflation Reduction Action”.
“Confidence in renewables helped member states increase the 2030 targets for renewable energy, and energy efficiency”.
He, however, expressed concerns moving forward: “In the space of two years, Europe has lost its leadership as the largest world market for wind to the Asia Pacific region. Now this trend starts to be visible in the EU as well.”
“This happens as the pressure from international competitors is growing. These players can leverage the advantage of operating in larger domestic markets and benefiting from various forms of government supports”.
The news comes as UN researchers warned this week that the climate could reach an “irreversible tipping point”.
