Combating the energy crisis with renewables & energy savings

Tomorrow, Members of the European Parliament will vote on the European Parliament position on the revision of the Renewable Energy Directive and on the Energy Efficiency Directive. The Greens/EFA Group welcomes the call to increase the mandatory share of renewable energy in transport, heating, buildings and industry. We also welcome the call for mandatory national energy efficiency targets and a mandatory annual renovation rate for public buildings. Energy savings and the massive expansion of renewable energies will be central components of the response to the energy crisis. 

Ville Niinistö MEP, Greens/EFA Coordinator in the Industry, Research and Energy Committee and Greens/EFA shadow for the Renewable Energy Directive, comments:
        
"The vote on the Renewable Energy Directive is a chance to power up the transition to clean energies and to ensure that citizens are at the heart of the renewables revolution. With the climate crisis and the war in Ukraine, it is essential that the ambition of RED is aligned with the RePowerEU target of at least 45% renewables by 2030. Thanks to the efforts of the European Parliament, we have enhanced the proposal to ensure that no sector will be left stranded in the fossil era. This will enable our economy to take a unified step into the renewable future.

"Energy efficiency is key for saving energy. It’s better for the climate and for people's wallets. Energy efficiency technologies and saving policies make a crucial difference in eliminating Europe’s dependency on Russian fossil fuels for good. National commitments and high targets drive energy efficiency and creating energy savings, which are one of the key tools to solve the energy crisis. We will defend mandatory and high savings targets in the upcoming negotiations with the Council and the Commission."

More: 
MEPs will debate RED today from 13.00 and EED was debated yesterday. Later today, the MEPs will also debate the rising energy prices. 

The compromise text on the EED proposes the introduction of an EU energy savings target of 14.5%, as well as mandatory national  targets to oblige every single Member State to save energy. The revised RED aims at pushing higher shares of renewables in various sectors: transport, heating and cooling, buildings and industry. Both the RED and the EED are part of the European Green Deal and central to meeting the EU climate target of at least 55 percent greenhouse gas reduction by 2030.