?European Energy Monthly | Issue 1

Click here to receive our newsletters right to your email!

We are delighted to introduce you to FleishmanHillard's new monthly newsletter on European energy and climate policy. Our aim is to provide you with a compact monthly update on the most important developments at EU and national level. We want to provide you with an overview, but also surprising or important details.

Today's issue focuses on the European Commission's communication on the EU's climate change target for 2040. What would the proposed target of a 90% reduction in greenhouse gases compared to 1990 levels mean for different sectors, and what energy and climate policy scenarios are realistic for the next European legislative term? We address these questions below and in a comprehensive briefing.

But these questions are also closely linked to Ursula von der Leyen, who has put the Green Deal at the top of her political agenda and officially announced on 19 February that she is seeking a second term at the helm of the European Commission. In early March, she hopes to be chosen by the EPP party conference as its top candidate for the European elections. To be re-elected, however, she will have to convince not only the EPP and a majority in the Parliament but also the leaders of the member states. Euractiv has taken a closer look at what a balancing act this could prove to be.

But even if she wins a second term, it is not a given that she will continue with her energy and climate policies. Her own party has told her that Europe's security and international competitiveness should take centre stage in the future. And the EPP Group had already made it clear in the legislative process on the Nature Restoration Law that it no longer wanted to toe the line of the Commission and its President under all circumstance. To stay up to date with the next steps for the EU Green Deal under a possible second Von Der Leyen leadership term, as well as the latest reactions and developments at national level, take a look at our other sections below and keep an eye out for our next monthly editions. The European Energy Monthly is compiled by FleishmanHillard's Energy Community of 18 public affairs offices across Europe, ready to help you monitor, support, and engage on energy and climate change legislation.

KEY UPCOMING ENERGY EVENTS

4 – 5 March 2024 | Solar Power Summit

Organizer: Solar Power Europe

Location: Brussels, BE

?

4?– 6 March 2024 |?9th Sustainability Week?

Organizer: The Economist?

Location: London, GB

18 – 22 March 2024 | Baltic Nuclear Energy Forum

Organizer:?Business for Climate Association, UN Global Compact Network Poland, Fahrenheit?Universities

Location:?Gdansk, PL

?

19?– 20 March 2024 |?Berlin Energy Transition Dialogue?

Organizer:?German Federal Government

Location:?Berlin, DE

?

20?– 22 March 2024 |?WindEurope Annual Event?

Organizer:?WindEurope

Location:?Bilbao, ES

EUROPEAN UNION UPDATES

• 2040 Climate Target: What would our life look like if we achieve 90% emissions reduction by 2040 following the European Commissions’ recommendation?
• CCUS:?To achieve deep decarbonisation, deployment of CCUS technologies is key, a new European Commission strategy plans on expanding this market at scale.
• Carbon Removals: After the carbon is captured, a significant portion must be removed. With the EU’s new carbon removals certification rules, this should become a more reliable measure.
• Green Industrial Act: A new political Antwerp Declaration was signed by 70 CEOs to push the European Commission to better support the industrial green transition in its next mandate.
• Clean Tech:? EU institutions agree to boost manufacturing of clean tech through a final agreement on the Net-Zero Industry Act, setting manufacturing benchmarks for 2030.

FROM THE MEMBER STATES

• Backup Capacity: Germany’s coalition government agrees on a white paper for the long-awaited Power Plant Strategy – 10 GW of H2-ready gas-fired power plants to be built around 2030.?
• ?New Regulatory Body: The Spanish Government has decided to re-establish an independent market supervisory authority (CNE) for the energy sector to ensure competition in the climate-neutral transformation.
• ?Carbon Management:?Germany’s Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action breaks government consensus by paving the way for CCS in Germany, including in the power sector.?
• ?IPCEI:?France to mobilize pro-nuclear coalition among EU countries to include nuclear technology in Important Projects of Common Interest (IPCEI), minister says.
• ?Nuclear Energy:?Poland shifts away from the US for its nuclear power program as a partnership with France becomes more likely for the nation’s second nuclear power plant.

ENERGY DISCOVERY OF THE MONTH

Tracking Member State progress towards EU energy and climate goals

While the European Commissions’ recommendation for a 2040 climate target kickstarts the next phase of the EU Green Deal, without significant progress towards our 2030 climate targets, Europe will not deliver its Green Deal at all. To keep track of this, the Governance Regulation obliges EU Member States to deliver National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) detailing their transition measures. A new NGO tracker now reports on the remaining gaps in those plans.

The next round of final NECPs is due by end June 2024 and Member States were obliged to submit a first draft last year. While not all Member States submitted a draft on time, the European Commission did publish an assessment of the draft plans, calling on the governments to increase their ambition because, without it, the EU’s 2030 climate target would not be met. You can find more information about this mid-term assessment in our FleishmanHillard blog post here.

To keep track of the National Energy and Climate Plans progress, 14 NGOs across thirteen EU Member States have banded together to create a very helpful tracker. It compares the data reported in the available NECPs with energy and emissions data reported by Eurostat and the European Environmental Agency, to better understand the remaining gaps. As this year the submission deadline for the NECPs falls in the same month as the European Elections, this tracker comes at a very opportune time to better understand for which energy and climate policies, more extensive implementation or legislative action is needed.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE AT FLEISHMANHILLARD

This month, key discussions on the next phase of the EU Green Deal were kickstarted by the European Commission’s recommendation for a 2040 climate target. Consisting of a political communication and a scientific impact assessment, the publication caused quite a stir in both Brussels and European capitals.

The European Commission has assessed three possible targets that could be compatible with a climate-neutrality trajectory by 2050. This included an 80% target, an 85% target and a 90% target. Based on a 600-page assessment of the sectoral impacts, the 90% target is recommended as the overall least-cost and fairest option.

Sectoral impacts of an ambitious climate trajectory are understandably immense. A net-zero power system by 2035, a 30% reduction in agricultural emissions and 50% of all private and commercial vehicle fleets becoming zero-emissions by 2040; these are massive societal challenges ahead of us. To achieve the sectoral transitions, the impact assessment notes that the current investment challenge for the EU’s energy system alone, is 3% of GDP annually from 2031-2050.

Are you interested in a full overview of the 2040 climate target recommendation and impacts? The FleishmanHillard Brussels office has prepared an overview briefing, including three different political scenarios that could affect whether and how we reach an ambitious 2040 climate target, to provide food for thought for the next legislative mandate.

To receive access to this briefing, please contact Brussels’ Head of Energy and Climate, Máximo Miccinilli?[email protected].

OUR TEAM AT FLEISHMANHILLARD

Our community is made up of public affairs and public relations specialists in the fields of energy, climate and sustainable transport policy in our EMEA offices. We strive to be a true pan-European team sharing the latest intelligence from our jurisdictions and cooperating on a wide range of clients and projects. This makes us uniquely equipped to execute multi-market strategies to achieve your targets.

?