Explanatory Memorandum to COM(2022)591 - Framework to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy - Main contents
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This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.
| dossier | COM(2022)591 - Framework to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy. |
|---|---|
| source | COM(2022)591  |
| date | 09-11-2022 |
1. CONTEXT OF THE PROPOSAL
• Reasons for and objectives of the proposal
The European Green Deal put renewable energy at the heart of the clean energy transition. The current international tensions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the overall geopolitical context and the very high energy prices have exacerbated the need to accelerate energy efficiency and the deployment of renewable energy in the Union with the objective to phase out EU’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels.
In this context, on 18 May 2022, the Commission adopted, as part of the REPowerEU plan, a proposal to amend Directive (EU) 2018/2001 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources (“REDII”), Directive 2010/31/EU on the energy performance of buildings and Directive 2012/27/EU on energy efficiency in order to accelerate the green transition towards renewable energy and increased energy efficiency. The proposal introduced more ambitious energy efficiency and renewable energy targets, measures to further simplify and streamline the administrative permit-granting procedures applicable to renewable energy projects in a coordinated and harmonised manner across the EU as well as measures to increase the deployment of solar installations on buildings. The Council and the European Parliament are currently working towards the adoption of the revised REDII.
Since the publication of the REPowerEU plan on 18 May 2022, the situation of the energy crisis has worsened, calling for urgent action. Record spikes of the natural gas price in summer, further disruption of the supplies through the North Stream I pipeline, increased inflation and electricity price fluctuations cause economic and social hardship, placing a heavy burden on citizens and on the economy. Rising energy costs are leading to reduced purchasing power for citizens and loss of competitiveness for companies. The shortage in gas and power supply and the relatively inelastic energy demand have led to significant increases in prices and volatility of gas and electricity prices in the EU. National measures to counter these trends may lead to fragmentation of the internal market and may not guarantee solidarity.
In that context, the ongoing crisis calls for temporary but immediate action to achieve some of its objectives faster, including accelerating Europe’s clean energy transition. The European Union has taken steps to reduce gas demand and intervene on energy markets in order to address the impact of the crisis for this winter. Despite these actions, the situation remains extremely challenging. European consumers and businesses continue to be exposed to prices that are too high and volatile. Unpredictable events, like the sabotage of pipelines, may still further disrupt our security of supply. Tensions on gas markets are likely to persist, also beyond this winter. Faster deployment of renewables is necessary for a definitive end to the current emergency as it will immediately and structurally reduce demand for fossil fuels in the power, heating and cooling, industry and transport sectors. Thanks to their low operational costs, renewables can positively impact energy prices across the EU.
Lengthy and complex administrative procedures have been identified as one of the key obstacles hampering the speed and number of investments in renewables and related infrastructure. On 20 and 21 October 2022, the European Council, in its conclusions, called for a fast-tracking of the simplification of permitting procedures in order to accelerate the rollout of renewables and grids including by means of emergency measures. Some of the measures introduced in the May 2022 proposal to accelerate the permit-granting process for renewable energy plants, in particular those related to the overriding public interest presumption, repowering of plants and permit-granting for solar equipment on existing structures, can be implemented by Member States in a rapid manner, without requiring burdensome changes to their national procedures and legal systems. The crisis calls for immediate targeted measures in these areas as well as other measures to promote specific technologies such as heat pumps which accelerate the transition away from the use of gas in heating. If implemented immediately, these measures have the potential to increase renewable generation in the short-term and thus increase the contribution of the renewables to addressing the ongoing crisis.
• Consistency with existing policy provisions in the policy area
The proposed instrument sets out temporary, proportionate and extraordinary measures. It complements existing relevant EU initiatives and legislation and is complementary to the initiatives already taken by the Commission to respond to the current crisis in energy markets. It builds upon the “REPowerEU” Plan of 18 May 2022 which puts the massive speed-up and scale-up in renewable energy in power generation, industry, buildings and transport at the core of the strategy to accelerate the phasing out of Russian fossil fuels.
In particular, the Commission proposed as part of the “REPowerEU” plan a revision of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 which increases the binding 2030 EU target to 45% by 2030, up from 40% of the previous proposal from 14 July 2021, and establishes a framework for streamlining and speeding up the administrative permit-granting process for renewable energy projects.
The proposed instrument is a temporary urgency measure. It is time limited to one year’s duration, with a review clause in order to consider extending its validity, if necessary.
The proposed regulation reflects the need to take urgent action in response to the energy crisis, as called for by the above-mentioned European Council conclusions. It aims to address the current energy crisis through focused immediate action that accelerates the deployment of renewable energy projects which have high potential of rapid and effective impact. To this end, the proposed instrument identifies a set of measures the immediate application of which would ensure a short-term acceleration of the permit-granting procedures for renewable energy projects.
In this context, it should be noted that, in line with the Council Recommendation on ensuring a fair transition towards climate neutrality and the Commission Recommendation on speeding up permit-granting procedures for renewable energy projects and facilitating Power Purchase Agreements, ensuring adequate staffing of the permit-granting bodies and environmental assessment authorities with relevant skills and qualifications remains essential to reap the full benefits of any simplification of permitting procedures aiming at acceleration the roll out of renewables and grids.
Similarly, national permitting authorities should seek to speed up permitting procedures of renewable energy technology manufacturing sites as achieving the REPowerEU goals will require diversifying the supply of renewable energy equipment and of critical raw materials, reducing sectoral dependencies, overcoming supply chain bottlenecks and expanding the EU’s clean energy technology manufacturing capacity.
• Consistency with other Union policies
The proposal is an extraordinary measure, to be applied for a limited time, which is consistent with a broader set of initiatives to enhance the Union’s energy resilience and to mitigate the impact of high energy prices and potential disruptions of the energy supplies. The proposal does not compromise the functioning of the internal market, as well as the measures for addressing interrupted energy supplies and solidarity mechanisms. The proposal is fully in line with the Commission’s European Green Deal ambition for faster decarbonisation, and roll-out of renewable energy projects and builds upon the objectives for speeding up the reduction in dependency on Russian fossil fuels by deploying renewable energy at a large scale as an alternative source. The proposal is in line with environmental objectives, as accelerated deployment of renewable energy is key to mitigate the impacts of both climate change and pollution, which are driving biodiversity loss and threaten public health and safety, in line with the objectives of the European Climate Law (Regulation (EU) 2021/1119).
The proposal is in line with the recommendations made to Member States in the context of the 2022 European Semester framework to streamline permitting of renewable energy projects. It is also expected to accelerate investments in renewable energy under the Recovery and Resilience Facility, including REPowerEU chapters to be included under national Recovery and Resilience Plans.
2. LEGAL BASIS, SUBSIDIARITY AND PROPORTIONALITY
• Legal basis
The legal basis for this instrument is Article 122(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (‘TFEU’).
The current disruption to gas supplies and resulting impacts on gas and electricity prices constitute a severe difficulty in the supply of energy pursuant to Article 122 TFEU. The weaponisation of gas supply and the Russian Federation’s manipulation of the markets through intentional disruptions of gas flows have led not only to skyrocketing energy prices, but also to endangering security of supply. Soaring electricity prices are putting a significant burden on consumers and businesses, and if no action is taken, they risk reaching unsustainable levels, which could have significant wider social and economic implications. EU leaders and the Commission have identified the urgent need for additional measures to help increase access to renewable energy to mitigate the impact on EU citizens, improve security of supply and be better prepared for the coming winter. The temporary measures under the proposed Regulation aim to ensure a targeted coordinated approach to accelerate specific permit-granting procedures applicable to those renewable energy projects which have high potential of immediate and effective impact. They therefore address the specific administrative authorisation bottlenecks for the implementation of these projects.
• Subsidiarity (for non-exclusive competence)
A cost-efficient, fast and large-scale deployment of sustainable renewable energy in line with the ambition of the European Green Deal and the REPowerEU Communication cannot be achieved by Member States alone. An EU approach is needed to provide the right incentives to Member States with different levels of ambition to accelerate, in a coordinated way, the energy transition from the traditional fossil fuel-based energy system towards a more integrated and energy-efficient energy system based on renewable energies.
Taking into account the different energy policies among Member States, action at EU level, supported by the robust governance framework, is more likely to achieve the EU climate and pollution reduction targets through the required increased deployment of renewables than national or local action alone.
Lengthy and complex administrative procedures are among the key barriers for investments in renewable energies and their related infrastructure. The duration and complexity of the permit-granting procedures greatly varies between different renewable energy technologies and between Member States. Member States are taking action on addressing permitting barriers identified at national level and are encouraged to continue doing so, for instance also via the collaborative work in the European Commission’s Single Market Enforcement Taskforce 1 . A coordinated European approach to shortening and simplifying permit-granting procedures and administrative processes is needed to speed up the necessary deployment of renewable energies. This is in turn necessary for the EU to reach its climate and energy 2030 targets, its long-term objectives of climate neutrality and zero pollution as well as phase out its dependence on Russian fossil fuels and reduce energy prices. Taking into account the different energy policies, priorities and procedures among Member States, and in view of the urgency to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy across all Member States, action at EU level is more likely to achieve the required objectives than national or local action alone.
Finally, the proposed Regulation introduces targeted amendments to existing pieces of Union legislation. This intervention, which will further streamline certain permit-granting procedures, justifies the need for action at Union level.
• Proportionality
The initiative complies with the proportionality principle. In view of the unprecedented geopolitical situation created by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the continuous highly volatile energy prices and the need to ensure Europe’s energy security of supply for the upcoming winter season and throughout next year, there is a clear need for coordinated and urgent action to immediately accelerate the deployment of renewable energy sources in addition to the actions proposed by the Commission as part of the REPowerEU plan of 18 May 2022. However, the identified actions are limited to those targeting the specific administrative authorisation bottlenecks affecting the implementation of those renewable energy projects which have a high potential of rapid and effective impact.
• Choice of the instrument
Taking into account the urgent need to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy projects to replace gas and given the scale of the energy crisis, the potential of its social, economic and financial impacts and the urgency to mitigate them, the Commission deems it suitable to act by way of a regulation which is of general scope and directly and immediately applicable. The Regulation is time limited. This would result in a swift, uniform and Union-wide approach as regards specific permit-granting procedures applicable to certain renewable energy projects to address the severe difficulties, which the Union is currently facing.
3. STAKEHOLDER CONSULTATIONS AND IMPACT ASSESSMENTS
• Stakeholder consultations
On 20 and 21 October 2022, the European Council, in its conclusions, called for a fast-tracking of the simplification of permitting procedures in order to accelerate the rollout of renewables and grids including by means of emergency measures. Due to the urgency to prepare the proposal so that it can be adopted on time by the Council, a formal stakeholder consultation could not be carried out. However, the Commission plans to engage with stakeholders, and notably renewable energy producers, representatives of civil society and of national administration, for ensuring a successful implementation of this Regulation. The proposal also builds on extensive discussions with stakeholders, Member States and the European Parliament in the context of the preparation of the proposal for a revision of Directive (EU) 2018/2001 of 18 May 2022, and the subsequent co-decision negotiations, as well as the RES Simplify project 2 .
• Impact assessment
Given the temporary and urgent nature of the measures that respond to an emergency situation, an impact assessment could not be carried out.
• Fundamental rights
No negative impact has been identified on fundamental rights. The overarching aim of this review is to increase the use of renewable energy, which is in line with Article 37 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, under which a high level of environmental protection and the improvement of the quality of the environment must be integrated into the policies of the Union and ensured in accordance with the principle of sustainable development. Furthermore, streamlined procedures for permit granting in the proposed Regulation consider the need to protect legitimate expectations and existing investments, and therefore will not jeopardise the right to own and use lawfully acquired possessions, as enshrined in Article 17 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The provisions of this Regulation are also drafted in a manner which does not negatively affect public health and the legal interests of the individuals.
4. BUDGETARY IMPLICATIONS
This proposal does not require additional resources from the EU budget.