European Union countries have enough gas in storage to go through the winter, but the surge in gas prices shows the need to quickly switch to renewable sources and analyse the idea of a strategic EU gas storage and joint buying, European Energy Commissioner Kadri Simson said. “Gas underground storage …
Read More »EU Lawmakers Back Clampdown on Potent Greenhouse Gas Methane
The European Parliament’s environment committee on Tuesday rallied behind EU plans to make companies and countries cut their methane emissions, indicating lawmakers are likely to back upcoming legislation to clamp down on the potent greenhouse gas. Methane is the second biggest cause of climate change after carbon dioxide. It has …
Read More »EU Ministers Unveil Plan to Weaken Russian Grip on Gas Supply
Europe’s energy ministers have joined forces to establish a plan that will reduce their dependence on foreign gas and purchase supplies as a bloc as part of a larger effort to combat Russia’s stake in the highly-coveted resource. The plan is to purchase strategic gas reserves as a bloc with …
Read More »EU Countries Struggle to Agree Approach to COP26 Climate Talks
European Union countries are struggling to agree their negotiating position for the COP26 climate change conference, with rifts emerging over timeframes for emissions-cutting pledges, according to officials and documents seen by Reuters. The EU is drafting its position ahead of the November COP26 talks, where countries will attempt to finish …
Read More »EU Aims to Tackle Waste Packaging with New Legislation
Europe aims to cut down on waste as quickly as possible in order to halt the overconsumption that is damaging the planet and adding to climate change. But despite previous attempts, waste packaging is still on the rise in Europe. In 2018, Europe generated 174.1kg of packaging waste per inhabitant. …
Read More »EU Solar Power Generation Hits Record High
Solar power supply in the European Union during June and July rose to a record high in 2021, accounting for 10% of total electricity produced in the region, a report by independent climate think-tank Ember said on Wednesday (18 August). The 27 countries in the bloc generated nearly 39 terawatt …
Read More »Europe’s Push for Drastic Shift towards Electric Vehicles may Find Objections
The European Commission has voted last week to ban the sale of vehicles that run on gasoline or diesel by the year 2035 to change the energy matrix in transport. The EC proposals need to be approved by the European Parliament before becoming law – and reports suggest they could …
Read More »EU Gas Demand to Remain Unchanged even in Net-Zero Future
European energy system will need similar amounts of natural gas in a feasible net-zero future as it does today, shows the study commissioned by the Hydrogen4EU consortium. Hydrogen4EU is a research partnership aiming to inform on the contribution of low-carbon and renewable hydrogen in reaching the European energy transition goals. …
Read More »EU Court Says Russia should Limit Gas Supply to Europe
The Court of Justice of the European Union upheld on Thursday a lower tribunal’s ruling which had said that Russia’s access to the OPAL gas pipeline should be limited. The court case is a win for Poland against an appeal of the lower court’s ruling filed by Germany. The OPAL …
Read More »EU Energy Tax Plan Seeks to End Hidden Advantage for Fossil Fuels
A proposed new EU-wide fuel taxation system based on energy content rather than volume seeks to end incentives for petrol and diesel, aiming instead to support the uptake of green biofuels, renewable hydrogen and synthetic fuels. The European Commission tabled a revision of the 2003 energy tax directive on Wednesday …
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