Energy

Key challenges

• The fastest and most effective way to cut European emissions and improve air quality is to move beyond coal. More and more countries in Europe have committed to closing their last coal-fired power station before 2030, but some key countries are holding out for a later end date, or failing to discuss coal phase-out at all.
• Given the risks from the leakage of methane, which has a very high global warming potential, further investment in gas infrastructure is in conflict with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
• Shifting to biomass would be another false solution, as in practice most industrial-scale bioenergy has comparable emissions to fossil energy when measured across the short window of time in which we must act on climate change.
• Low-carbon sources of bioenergy, such as wastes and residues, are in no way available at the scale needed to deliver the massive energy requirements of sectors such as power generation and home heating.
• The European Union has ambitious targets for the rollout of clean energy. However, barriers and bottlenecks are blocking progress, and deployment rates need to rise significantly to quickly deliver on the potential for clean and secure energy.