Update from the European Commission’s DG ENER on EU energy policy

State of the Energy Union Report

The Commission has published today the State of the Energy Union Report 2024  - a report looking back at what has happened in the last 12 months (and in some ways the last 5 years) – notably taking stock of the new European Green Deal “Fit for 55” legislation that has been agreed (for example the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive and the new targets for 2030 set under the Directives on Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy). But of course it also looks at what the EU has done to address the energy crisis, triggered primarily by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.  

Crucially, the EU has managed to withstand critical risks to its security of energy supply, regain control over the energy market and prices, and accelerate the transition towards climate neutrality:

·       Renewable energy generation is breaking new capacity records. In the first half of 2024, half of the EU’s electricity generation came from renewable sources.

·       The share of Russian gas in EU imports dropped from 45% in 2021 to 18% by June 2024, while imports from trusted partners like Norway and the US have increased.

·       We reduced gas demand between August 2022 and May 2024 by 138 billion cubic meters.

·       The EU reached its 90% winter gas storage target on 19 August 2024, well ahead of the 1 November deadline.

·       Energy prices are more stable and remain significantly below the peak levels of the energy crisis of 2022.

·       The EU’s greenhouse gas emissions fell by 32.5% from 1990 to 2022, while the EU economy has grown by around 67% in the same period.

·       At international level, the EU led the global initiative to triple renewable energy capacity and double energy efficiency improvements as part of the transition away from fossil fuels, which was endorsed by all Parties at COP28 in Dubai.

See press release and factsheet. The report was presented at midday at a press conference by EU Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson. (NB This is available in all EU languages, if you prefer to avoid English). See also Commissioner’s introductory remarks.

We have also published a factsheet for each EU country on the progress made.

Next Commission College

You should also be aware that Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen is expected to announce the different portfolios in the next Commission College in Strasbourg next Tuesday (Sept 17). This will include a Mission letter for the policy priorities in the relevant areas of competence. We (probably) already know all the names of the next Commissioners – one from each Member State – but it’s not clear what the structure of the College will be, e.g. how many Vice Presidents, and who will have which dossier. At the moment, the media is talking about the Czech Commissioner or maybe the Danish Commissioner becoming the next Commissioner for Energy. But this is not certain. Not even we know!!

Once this is confirmed, the Commissioners-designate will need to approved by the European Parliament. This entails each of them preparing written answers to certain policy questions and then facing a 2-3-hour Hearing in front of the relevant European Parliament Committee. This is currently scheduled for mid-October. All of these Hearings will of course be webstreamed live.

The new Commission can only take office once the whole College has been approved by a vote in the European Parliament plenary session. The aim is for this approval process to be completed by the end of October, so that the College starts on November 1. However, we usually see MEPs blocking one or more of the nominees – requiring a second hearing and/or a new nominee (and possible reshuffle of dossiers) - thereby delaying the final approval of the new College.  

(We will send an update with more details next week.)    

For more information about EU energy policy issues - see  EU Energy, or follow us on X -  @Energy4Europe

And if you have further questions, please address them to our Spokesperson’s Service – namely tim.mcphie@ec.europa.eu and guilia.bedini@ec.europa.eu

Regards,

Roger

Roger Waite

European Commission, DG ENER, Unit A2 (External Communications)

E-Mail: roger.waite@ec.europa.eu