Renewable energy

The European Commission today adopted a communication on the progress in EU member states towards their renewable energy targets. The Greens welcomed that the Commission acknowledged national support schemes as the way forward for promoting renewables, but called for more to be done to support putting renewables at the heart of the EU's energy strategy. Commenting on the communication, Green energy spokesperson Claude Turmes said:

 "National support schemes for renewable energy have proved overwhelmingly successful in promoting the uptake of renewables; we welcome that the Commission has acknowledged this and resisted the lobby by big energy utilities to undermine these national schemes. The message is simple: if it ain't broke, don't fix it. National support schemes, combined with the cooperation mechanisms provided for in the EU renewables legislation, are the best way to promote an increased share of renewables and hopefully this approach will be endorsed at this week's energy summit.

 "Increasing the share of renewables will ultimately reduce electricity wholesale prices, as the Commission recognises, however it needs to do more to ensure these savings are passed through to consumers. In terms of putting renewables at the heart of EU energy strategy, it is welcome that the Commission is calling for greater prioritisation of renewables under the next EU budget. Hopefully, this will be transformed into concrete proposals for the financial perspectives.

 "Unfortunately, the Commission is still dragging its feet on the issue of sustainable biofuels. The Commission urgently needs to introduce rules to take account of the impact of indirect land use change in the production of biofuels. Delaying action on this will lead to serious environmental damage and ultimately undermine the EU's climate change policy."