Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) agreed to update the Renewable Energy Directive (RED), raising the share of renewables in the European Union’s (EU) final energy consumption to 42.5% by 2030, with member states striving to achieve 45%.

The legislation will also speed up procedures to grant permits for new renewable energy power plants, including solar arrays and wind farms, or to adapt existing ones. National authorities should take no longer than 12 months to approve new renewable energy installations, if located in so-called ‘renewables go-to areas’. Outside such areas, the process should not exceed 24 months.

In the transport sector, renewables deployment should lead to a 14.5% reduction by 2030 in greenhouse gas emissions, by using a greater share of advanced biofuels and a more ambitious quota for renewable fuels of non-biological origin, such as hydrogen.

It was also agreed that member states set an indicative target for innovative renewable energy technology of at least 5% of newly installed renewable energy capacity, as well as a binding framework for cross-border energy projects. MEPs had also pushed for stricter criteria on the use of biomass to ensure that the EU does not subsidise unsustainable practices, stating that biomass harvesting should be done in a way that prevents negative impacts on soil quality and biodiversity.

Commenting on the vote, lead MEP Markus Pieper said: ‘In our pursuit of greater energy independence and CO₂ reduction, we have raised our renewable energy targets... We have designated renewables as an overriding public interest, streamlining their approval process. Our focus encompasses wind power, photovoltaics, hydropower, geothermal energy and tidal currents. Biomass from wood will remain classified as renewable energy. Under the principle of “positive silence”, investments will be deemed approved in the absence of administrative feedback. We now urgently need an EU electricity market design and an immediate shift to hydrogen for a greener transition.’

EU aviation regulation 
MEPs also approved a new law to increase the uptake of sustainable fuels, such as advanced biofuels or hydrogen, in the aviation sector.

The RefuelEU aviation rules are part of the Fit for 55 package, the EU’s plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels and to ensure the EU becomes climate neutral by 2050. They seek to encourage the aviation sector to use sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) to cut emissions.

An ambitious timeline has been set for the provision of the jet fuel mix, obliging EU airports and fuel suppliers to ensure that, starting from 2025, at least 2% of aviation fuels will be green, with this share increasing every five years: 6% in 2030, 20% in 2035, 34% in 2040, 42% in 2045 and 70% in 2050. In addition, a specific proportion of the fuel mix (1.2% in 2030, 2% in 2032, 5% in 2035 and progressively reaching 35% in 2050) must comprise synthetic fuels like e-kerosene.

According to the new rules, the term ‘sustainable aviation fuels’ will include synthetic fuels, certain biofuels produced from agricultural or forestry residues, algae, bio-waste, used cooking oil or certain animal fats. Recycled jet fuels produced from waste gases and waste plastic are also considered ‘green’. Renewable hydrogen as part of a sustainable fuel mix is also included.

Feed and food crop-based fuels and fuels derived from palm and soy materials will not be classified as green as they do not meet the sustainability criteria.

Furthermore, to promote decarbonising in the aviation sector and to better inform the public, as of 2025 there will be an EU label for the environmental performance of flights. Airlines will be able to market their flights with a label indicating the expected carbon footprint per passenger and the expected CO₂ efficiency per kilometre. It will allow passengers to compare the environmental performance of flights operated by different companies on the same route.

Both the renewables and aviation legislation will enter into force once formally endorsed by the European Council.

New wind power package
Meanwhile, European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen announced a new ‘wind power package’ when she delivered her annual State of the European Union speech last week. Stressing that the wind industry would play a key role in delivery the EU Green Deal, she noted that the wind sector supply chain was facing a unique set of challenge, which the new package aimed to address by fast-tracking permitting more than current legislation already does; improving auction systems in member states; and focusing on skills, access to finance and stable supply chains.

The EU has set an ambitious target of 420 GW of wind energy by 2030. However, as WindEuorpe notes: ‘The reality in the wind industry does not reflect this ambition.’ Commenting on the announcement, the trade association continued: ‘The struggles of the European wind supply chain mean Chinese turbine manufacturers are now starting to win orders here. They offer cheaper turbines, looser standards and unconventional financial terms. There is a very real risk that the expansion of wind energy will be made in China, not in Europe. So new measures from the EU Commission cannot come soon enough.’

Von der Leyen went on to state that a fair and just energy transition was ‘broader than one sector, saying: ‘From wind to steel, from batteries to electric vehicles, our ambition is crystal clear – the future of our clean tech industry has to be made in Europe.’

With this in mind, she noted that the electric vehicles (EVs) sector was ‘a crucial industry for the clean economy, with a huge potential for Europe’. However, global markets were being flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars, with their price kept artificially low by huge state subsidies leading to market distortion. In a bid to tackle the issue, von der Leyen reported that the EC was launching an anti-subsidy investigation into EVs coming from China. ‘Europe is open for competition. Not for a race to the bottom,’ she said.

Germany waters-down fossil boiler act
In other news, the German Parliament adopted a watered-down version of a controversial ban on new fossil fuel boilers, which is now due to start from 2028, following months of debate and an injunction by the country’s top court. Initially, the law would have enacted a clean cut from fossil fuel boilers from 2024. Only new heaters running on at least 65% renewables were supposed to be allowed, in favour of heat pumps, biomass or district heating.

However, under pressure, the German Parliament passed a significantly altered law on the 8 September, tying boiler bans to municipal heat plans that are due to be adopted by 2028. As a result, the climate impact of the Building Energy Act is strongly diminished, and anxious consumers are racing to secure new oil and gas boilers to avoid switching to more expensive heat pumps. Consequently, German buildings are now expected to miss the 2030 climate target by 200mn tonnes of CO₂ emissions, in the switch to clean heating systems alongside rising renovation rates, reports Euractiv.