EU and SolarPower reaffirm their commitment to a 45% renewable energy target by 2030

At an event organised by the European aluminium and solar power sectors, represented by European Aluminium and SolarPower Europe, 12 energy-related organisations and city associations reaffirmed their support for a 45 per cent renewable energy target for the EU by 2030. They also urged the Council of the European Union to level up with the spirit of the European Commission and European Parliament.

“We are committed to eliminating our dependence on Russian fossil fuels as quickly as we can. Recent events have confirmed that renewables are not only beneficial for providing more sustainable energy, but they also play a role in making our energy supply more affordable and more secure across the EU. We need to move even faster, and that is why we have proposed that we increase our European 2030 renewables target to at least 45%,” said DG ENER Director-General, Ditte Juul Jørgensen.

The most cost-effective strategy to achieve the EU's 55 per cent greenhouse gas emission reduction objective is to include 45 per cent renewable energy in the final energy mix in 2030, according to modelling from LUT University. This would put the continent on pace to meet the 1.5° Paris Agreement scenario.

“We are in times of crisis: the Russian war in Ukraine and astronomical energy prices felt across Europe demonstrates that renewable energy is security and fossil fuel dependency is vulnerability. The European Commission and Parliament have already adopted, or will soon adopt, a 45% goal for Europe for 2030. This winter, it is crucial that European governments make the right choice and support a 45% renewable target for our people, security, and climate,” said Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe.

At a relaunch event in Brussels, campaign signatories came together to emphasise the significance of a 45 per cent renewable objective in the present geopolitical and economic context. The event featured keynote speeches from Hildegard Bentele, MEP, and Ditte Juul Jrgensen, Director-General of DG ENER. Over 300 people participated in the event co-organised by SolarPower Europe and European Aluminium. It was held in response to the European Commission's REPowerEU recommendations from May 2022, which proposed the 45 per cent objective to lessen Europe's reliance on Russian gas.

The EU Council could only establish a 40 per cent renewables objective when the French Presidency of the body ended in June 2022. However, the European Parliament is anticipated to take a stance on 45 per cent renewables in the Strasbourg plenary session later this month on Tuesday, September 13, opening the door for a more significant political commitment to the quicker phase-out of fossil-fuel reliance.

“If we are serious about ending Europe’s third-country dependencies and reaching the 45% RES target, we must boost the domestic manufacturing of renewable energy technologies and their upstream supply chains. European decision makers must set the course for an affordable and secure green energy supply for the long-term now. For that, we also need a reliable and responsibly managed supply of strategic raw materials like aluminium. Without, the green energy transition and achieving the EU’s climate-neutrality objective will not be possible,” said Paul Voss, Director General of European Aluminium.