European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson urged France to raise its renewable energy target to “at least 44 per cent” by 2030.
France has so far refused to put forward a 2030 renewable energy target, insisting on a broader goal of “decarbonising” energy, which combines nuclear and renewables.
However, EU countries must submit their final national energy and climate plans by the June deadline, so the European Commission is becoming less and less favourable to Paris, insisting that the country should make its fair contribution to the EU’s renewable energy targets.
France needs to achieve at least 44 per cent renewable energy in gross final energy consumption by 2030 to contribute to the EU’s target of 42.5 per cent, according to Brussels. The target is set in the Renewable Energy Directive, updated last year. Simson announced this on 15 February:
France has to significantly raise its ambition on renewable energy sources to at least 44%.
The country has already missed its 2020 renewable energy target and refuses to correct this omission through the “statistical transfer mechanism.” The mechanism involves helping EU member states that are lagging behind become more successful.
Each EU country must submit these plans to allow the Commission to assess whether the bloc is on its way to meeting its climate targets. Final versions are due by June 2024.
The energy commissioner emphasised that if the plans show that France’s actions are not enough, “then we have to propose EU-level steps to cover that.” Simson also noted that other countries have already reported on their successes. For instance, the Irish, who have historically lagged behind on land-use emissions, “confirmed that they are willing to upgrade their targets.”
