A new ambitious agreement has been reached during the 5th interinstitutional trilogue on the RED II directive, where representatives of the 3 EU institutions managed to find a deal on the Energy Union file. After long discussions, the trilogue accepted to put in place binding targets of 32,5% of renewables share in the EU energy mix by 2030. Furthermore, the agreement includes a review clause to revise these targets upwards in 2023, in case of substantial cost reductions for the production of renewable energy, or in the eventuality of new obligations from international climate change agreements.
Following the approved text, high indirect land use change (ILUC) biofuels will be progressively phased out, and a certification process for low ILUC biofuesl will be established. The aim is to discourage investments for food crop-based biofuels production. First generation biofuels will be capped at the level consumed in each member state in 2020, with an additional 1% point allowed. According to MEP José Blanco Lopez (S&D), rapporteur from the European Parliament for this initiative, now is the moment to leave aside biofuels from food-based crop, and to further develop advanced biofuels from forest residues, agricultural waste and manure from feedstock. The text also reinforces citizens’ right to self-consumption, including a ban on charges and fees on self-consumed energy until 2026. These efforts will bring Europe again at the forefront of renewable technologies.
