Europe is facing one of its greatest ever tests. The impact of the war in Ukraine on energy prices is throwing many of the most vulnerable into, and putting millions more households at risk of energy poverty.
The transition of entire regions, and striving towards a sustainable, green and climate-neutral economy requires both a systemic approach aimed at providing comprehensive and overarching strategies, but also providing detailed, tailor-made and co-designed support for smaller stakeholders so that it really is a just transition, leaving no one behind.
While modern district heating systems can significantly contribute to the integration of renewable energy in order to decarbonise our energy system, many of the existing systems in Central and Eastern Europe are still highly inefficient and heavily reliant on fossil fuels, such as oil, fossil gas or coal.
The Romanian government’s proposal for CE Oltenia’s restructuring is a test for the European Commission’s commitment to aligning state aid with the European Green Deal.
The hastening phase-out of coal in the European power sector requires new solutions for local district heating grids. This paper locates and quantifies the issue in Europe, what can be done to transition to sustainable substitutes and what the challenges are on the way towards decarbonisation.
Terms of reference, assumptions and conditions for the establishmentof an inclusive, accessible, multi-stakeholder platform to assist EU countries and regions to unlock the support available through the EU Just Transition Mechanism and to deliver a truly just transition for their territories.
Spain has experienced a massive decline over the last year and a half, a large majority of coal mines closed by the end of 2018, more than half of installed coal capacity closed at the end of June 2020, and it is expected that the last coal power plant will shut no later than 2025.
We are calling on financial institutions to demand that utilities develop socially responsible plans for phasing out coal by 2030, the latest.