Renewable Energy Directive
11-06-08
The proposed Renewable Energy Directive centres around a legally-binding European target for 20% of all energy types - electricity, heat and transport fuels - to come from renewable sources from 2020.
It also includes a significant target to include biofuels in transport fuel - a 10% goal by 2020. And, for the first time the Directive singles out a need for specific action to promote renewable heat energy.
The Directive looks likely to be formally adopted by Europe in the first half of 2009, with Member States expected to finalise new National Action Plans on renewable energy by March 31, 2010.
Electricity
Because of slow progress in heat and fuels so far, Europe's 20% renewable energy target is going to require a significant contribution from the electricity sector - potentially as much as 40% electricity from renewable sources by 2020.
So far, the renewable electricity sector has seen the most progress so far in Europe - partly thanks to the existing Renewable Electricity Directive of 2001. This Directive set EU Member States with national targets that, if met, would see up to 22% of overall electricity consumption in Europe powered by renewable sources by 2010.
Most European countries are lagging behind their targets, and despite a 50% growth in non-hydro renewable power in Europe since 2005, the Commission is predicting a 19% renewable electricity rate in Europe in 2010 at best.
Under the Renewable Energy Directive, the Commission believes 34% of European electricity could come from renewable sources by 2020.
Wind would provide 12% of power by that time - with a third of that coming from offshore installations - while biomass energy was also forecast "substantial" expansion. "Novel" technologies like solar, wave and tidal power will grow more rapidly as costs come down, the Commission believes.
Transport fuels
Another major component of the Renewable Energy Directive is a requirement for 10% of road transport fuels to come from sustainable, renewable sources.
This seeks to turn around slow growth in European biofuel use in petrol and diesel, since the targets in the existing Biofuels Directive (2003) - to expand the 0.5% proportion of biofuels in road transport fuel to 2% by 2005 and 5.75% by 2010 - are unlikely to be met.
The Commission has suggested certification schemes to promote the use of bioethanol and biodiesel from agricultural crops. It believes that biofuels could contribute 14% of the European transport fuels market by 2020 - the equivalent of 43 million tonnes of oil a year.
Reflecting the controversy of some biofuel production methods, the Renewable Energy Directive requires greenhouse gas savings of at least 35% in using biofuels towards the transport fuel target. It also states that land with a high biodiversity or carbon stock should not be used to produce biofuels.
Filling stations with two or more diesel pumps are to sell diesel to a 7% biodiesel blend by December 2010, rising to 10% biodiesel blend by December 2014, or other diesel with at least 5% biofuel by volume.
Heat
Renewable heat has never been singled out for regulation by Europe before. Along with cooling, heat accounts for around half of all EU energy consumption, but only 10% comes from renewable sources at present.
While the existing CHP Directive (2004) and Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (2003) promote efficient heating, there have been few real drivers for renewable heat, although the Commission believes renewable energy targets does incentivise it to some degree.
The current 9% share of renewables in the heating and cooling market is dominated by small-scale domestic wood burning, but the Commission believes biomass and CHP power stations and to lesser degree solar and geothermal sources could double this proportion of renewables in heating and cooling.
