Elements of Europe's energy union | Georg Zachmann at Bruegel.org

he issue: European
Union energy policy is guided by three objectives: sustainability,
security of supply and competitiveness. To meet its goals in these
areas, the EU is updating its energy strategy with new targets for 2030.
The starting point for this is the assessment of the previous EU
climate and energy package, at the centre of which were the 20-20-20
targets for 2020. Although the EU is largely on track to meet these
targets, EU energy policy is generally not perceived as a success.
Recent events have undermined some of the assumptions on which the 2020
package was built, and the policies for achieving the 2020 targets –
although at first sight effective – are far from efficient.

Policy challenge: ;To meet the EU's objectives for emissions,
electricity supply and gas security of supply, well-designed European
markets could provide better results at lower cost than uncoordinated
national approaches. In other areas – such as energy efficiency and
supporting innovation – markets alone might not be enough. Europe should
thus rethink its quantitative headline targets for 2030.The proposed 40
percent decarbonisationtarget is in line with a stronger emission
allowance market, but the target for renewables should be defined in
terms of innovation rather than deployment, and the energy-efficiency
target should be defined in terms of encouraged energy and cost savings,
not the amount of energy consumed in a certain period. | Read more at
Bruegel
http://www.bruegel.org/publications/publication-detail/publication/846-elements-of-europes-energy-union/?utm_source=Bruegel+publication+alert&utm_campaign=8d474e2176-Publication+Alert&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1f233d52bd-8d474e2176-275713602

The issue: European
Union energy policy is guided by three objectives: sustainability,
security of supply and competitiveness. To meet its goals in these
areas, the EU is updating its energy strategy with new targets for 2030.
The starting point for this is the assessment of the previous EU
climate and energy package, at the centre of which were the 20-20-20
targets for 2020. Although the EU is largely on track to meet these
targets, EU energy policy is generally not perceived as a success.
Recent events have undermined some of the assumptions on which the 2020
package was built, and the policies for achieving the 2020 targets –
although at first sight effective – are far from efficient.

Policy challenge: ;To meet the EU's objectives for emissions,
electricity supply and gas security of supply, well-designed European
markets could provide better results at lower cost than uncoordinated
national approaches. In other areas – such as energy efficiency and
supporting innovation – markets alone might not be enough. Europe should
thus rethink its quantitative headline targets for 2030.The proposed 40
percent decarbonisationtarget is in line with a stronger emission
allowance market, but the target for renewables should be defined in
terms of innovation rather than deployment, and the energy-efficiency
target should be defined in terms of encouraged energy and cost savings,
not the amount of energy consumed in a certain period. | Read more at
Bruegel
http://www.bruegel.org/publications/publication-detail/publication/846-elements-of-europes-energy-union/?utm_source=Bruegel+publication+alert&utm_campaign=8d474e2176-Publication+Alert&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_1f233d52bd-8d474e2176-275713602

 

The issue: European Union energy policy is guided by three objectives: sustainability, security of supply and competitiveness. To meet its goals in these areas, the EU is updating its energy strategy with new targets for 2030. The starting point for this is the assessment of the previous EU climate and energy package, at the centre of which were the 20-20-20 targets for 2020. Although the EU is largely on track to meet these targets, EU energy policy is generally not perceived as a success. Recent events have undermined some of the assumptions on which the 2020 package was built, and the policies for achieving the 2020 targets – although at first sight effective – are far from efficient.

Policy challenge: To meet the EU's objectives for emissions, electricity supply and gas security of supply, well-designed European markets could provide better results at lower cost than uncoordinated national approaches. In other areas – such as energy efficiency and supporting innovation – markets alone might not be enough. Europe should thus rethink its quantitative headline targets for 2030.The proposed 40 percent decarbonisation target is in line with a stronger emission allowance market, but the target for renewables should be defined in terms of innovation rather than deployment, and the energy-efficiency target should be defined in terms of encouraged energy and cost savings, not the amount of energy consumed in a certain period.