EU Climate Action

In 2024, 46.9% of the EU's net electricity came from renewable energy sources, with wind and hydro power accounting for more than two-thirds of this total. Meanwhile, the use of renewable energy for heating and cooling grew to 26% in 2023, marking a 1.2 percentage point increase from 2022.

77 decarbonisation projects from 18 European countries have signed their grant agreements under the Innovation Fund 2023 Call (IF23). Meanwhile, the European Hydrogen Bank's second auction for renewable hydrogen production has attracted 61 bids for Innovation Fund support, including 8 maritime projects.

The Commission put forward an Action Plan, which builds on the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of the European Automotive Industry, and presented concrete actions that will ensure a robust and sustainable automotive sector and help unleash its innovative power.

Europe is the fastest-warming continent, facing extreme weather events like heatwaves, wildfires, droughts, and floods. The EU Preparedness Union Strategy outlines 30 key actions and a detailed Action Plan to support Member States in managing risks, embedding preparedness by design across EU policies.

As heatwaves become more frequent and intense, the Covenant of Mayors launched its new Cities Refresh campaign to empower European cities to take the lead in tackling urban heat and setting an example for climate resilience.

The event, which brought more than 500 people to Brussels, provided a space for Ambassadors and Partners to connect, reflect and get inspired, celebrating the power of collective action to drive climate solutions across Europe.

This year’s Cleantech Conference will explore the Clean Industrial Deal and how Europe is going to navigate the much-needed investment for decarbonisation. Notably, the conference will discuss how decarbonisation through innovation, thanks to initiatives like the Innovation Fund, can give the EU the upper hand in the race to climate neutrality.

Step into a visual journey of climate action with the ‘Capture your climate action’ outdoor photo exhibition, featuring the winning images from the European Climate Pact competition. The exhibition will be on display at the public esplanade in front of the Berlaymont building from 18 March to 14 April, giving you plenty of time to explore these inspiring stories.

The first stakeholder consultation workshop on the design of a new auction for industrial process heat decarbonisation under the Innovation Fund. As announced in the Clean Industrial Deal communication, this new auction is scheduled for 2025.

The EU Climate Action Academy is back with a new webinar! Don’t miss ‘citizens in action for climate science’ where you will explore how citizen science activities can enhance your climate action.

The Cities Mission Conference 2025 will be held in Vilnius, Lithuania with the theme “Harnessing City Successes: Advancing Climate Action for 2030”, to spotlight the progress and ambition of Mission Cities and their partners as they strive to achieve climate neutrality by 2030.

The LIFE Calls for proposals 2025 will be published on 24 April (tentative date). You will find the complete information in the Funding & tender opportunities portal. The Calls will be presented at the EU LIFE info days, planned from 13 to 15 May 2025. Click on "more" for more information!

The Commission announced in the Clean Industrial Deal Communication its intention to simplify State aid rules by adopting a new Clean Industrial Deal State aid Framework to accelerate the roll-out of renewable energy, deploy industrial decarbonisation and ensure sufficient capacity of clean tech manufacturing in Europe. With this consultation, the Commission seeks the views of relevant stakeholders on a draft for this framework to be adopted by June 2025.

The Net-Zero Industry Act introduced the obligation for certain EU-based oil and gas producers to contribute to the achievement of the EU objective of reaching 50 million tonnes of CO2 injection capacity into the EU by 2030. This Delegated Regulation will specify how contributing bodies will be identified, how their contributions will be calculated, and how they will report on their progress towards making their contributions.

The European Commission needs to update several regulatory acts for the implementation of the revised EU ETS. The AVR update complements the revision of the Monitoring and Reporting Regulation by addressing verification, ensuring that verifiers are qualified and accredited, for reliable emission data.

The purpose of this initiative is to add separate vehicle sub-groups for 'extra-heavy combination lorries' to the EU regulation that sets CO2 standards for heavy-duty vehicles (Regulation (EU) 2019/1242). This will ensure that the technical characteristics of such lorries are taken into account appropriately, making it easier for their manufacturers to comply with EU CO2 targets.

The 2025 #EUClimatePact Flagship Event brought together hundreds of changemakers from across Europe – all united by one goal: climate action. 🌍💪 From powerful speeches to inspiring stories, hands-on workshops and even musical bananas, the message was clear: together, we can build a climate-neutral, resilient future. 💚

According to Eurostat, the share of renewable electricity in the EU jumped 4.1 percentage points in just one year, reaching 45.3% in 2023 - the biggest increase since records began. 📈 With renewables growing faster than ever, the EU is powering a cleaner and more sustainable future. 🔋

2024 was the warmest year on record in 175 years - 1.55°C above pre-industrial levels. 🌍🌡️ Thanks to scientists, meteorologists & services like Copernicus, we can track these changes & take action. 🧑‍🔬