The Group of Chief Scientific Advisors to the European Commission published a report with recommendations on how to pursue the necessary energy transition.
On 29 June 2021, the Group of Chief Scientific Advisors under the European Commission’s (EC) Science Advice Mechanism (SAM) presented a report on ‘A Systemic Approach to the Energy Transition in Europe’. The seven Chief Scientific Advisors have the mandate by the EC to offer independent scientific advice to inform policy making. Supported by three previous colleagues that include Rolf-Dieter Heuer, the former Director-General of the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), the Group makes the case that energy systems must undergo a fundamental change to limit global warming and win the fight against climate change, a goal that the Scientific Advisors designate “one of the defining global efforts of our time”.
To achieve this fundamental change, the Chief Scientific Advisors think that energy production must be fully decarbonised and replaced by a variety of renewable energy sources. In particular energy-intensive sectors, such as transportation and industry must be almost fully decarbonised and the building sector must ensure major improvements to the energy efficiency of buildings. To make this happen, the EC already presented the European Green Deal and its related strategies, such as the EU’s new industrial strategy focusing on a circular economy, the renovation wave and – related to the latter – the New European Bauhaus (see SwissCore article). In late 2020, the EC published a Communication setting out how to achieve a 55% reduction of carbon emissions until 2030, compared to the 1990 level. Just this July, the Commission adopted a package of proposals to make the EU fit for this emissions reduction target (see SwissCore article).
In this wider policy context, the Chief Advisors offer four recommendations:
- Design EU energy policy aimed towards climate neutrality and sustainability, without leaving anyone behind. Maximise synergies and avoid trade-offs across technologies, regulatory and market measures, as well as social and behavioural changes.
- Develop flexible, efficient, and resilient EU energy systems by integrating decarbonised energy sources, electrification and the use of green and blue hydrogen. This recommendation asks for investments into the integration of infrastructures and technologies, including energy generation, transmission, and storage. Furthermore, Europe should aim at becoming a world leader in new technologies and smart systems thanks to adequate funding for research and innovation.
- Recognise the roles of all actors and stakeholders in creating an inclusive and participatory environment that incentivises and supports low-carbon energy choices. The latter should include the redistribution of the additional revenue created by energy taxation and carbon pricing to support low-income groups and promote sustainable energy systems.
- Support a coordinated combination of policies, measures and instruments, including carbon pricing as a driving force, to shape an effective, consistent and just regulatory system. The EU should insist on reciprocal climate commitments internationally to form ‘decarbonisation clubs’ and introduce a World Trade Organization-compatible border adjustment mechanism for carbon.
The Chief Advisors note that energy research played only a modest role in terms of budget during past EU framework programmes for research and innovation, even though a large share of funding supported research on nuclear fusion at the same time. They conclude that “in Horizon Europe and under the Green Deal the ambition should be further increased”.
There was some recent progress in a related area: The energy-intensive process of steel making. Earlier in July, the European Parliament supported the EC’s intention to foresee a budget of €111 million in annual funding for greening the EU’s traditional Research Fund for Coal and Steel (RFCS, cf. currently open call for projects) towards emission-free technologies. The EC had previously proposed to set the RFCS on a new financial basis and to link its R&I efforts better with Horizon Europe. Now, the ball is in the Council’s court.