The Commission proposed to speed up the granting of permits for renewable energy projects and to dedicate specific zones to them.
EU member states kept unchanged at 40% their target for the contribution of renewables to the 27 energy mix by 2030, despite the European Commission’s call for a further increase due to the war in Ukraine and its impact .
After proposing in its mid-2021 climate plan a target for renewables to cover 40% of the EU’s energy needs by 2030 (up from 32% currently), Brussels called in May for rise further, to 45%, to reduce Europe’s dependence on hydrocarbon imports faster.
At the same time, the Commission proposed to speed up the granting of permits for renewable energy projects and to dedicate specific zones to them.
Energy ministers decided yesterday to keep the target at 40%, but at the same time agreed to speed up procedures for granting permits, a decision that will now be the subject of negotiations with the European Parliament.
“Accelerating the use of renewable energy sources” is “the best way to become independent from Russian hydrocarbons and also contribute to our climate goals,” said Czech Energy Minister Jozef Sikelá, whose country exercises the alternating EU presidency, according to a press release released by the European Council.
The compromise adopted by the European governments provides for the creation in each country of zones of “acceleration (of the exploitation) of renewable energy sources”, or “go-to areas”, on land, in the sea and in terrestrial water resources, areas that can be efficient in terms of production and at the same time present “lower risks to the environment”.
In these zones, the maximum period for granting permits for new renewable energy installations will be reduced to one year (two for offshore projects), except in “exceptional circumstances”, while the requirements for environmental impact studies will be drastically reduced. States will, however, be able to exclude the construction of new electricity production facilities using biomass, as well as hydroelectric facilities.
And outside these zones, licensing procedures for renewable energy installations will also be accelerated to a maximum of two years (3 for offshore projects). For installations based on photovoltaic panels, the process should not exceed 3 months.
On the contrary, while the Commission predicted that it would be considered that there is a “tacit agreement” in the absence of an answer within the deadlines, the states were in favor of applying this principle at “intermediate stages” of the process, but maintained the need to give “expressly” the final license.
The European Parliament adopted this position in mid-December, stipulating that the maximum deadline for approving new renewable energy projects will be reduced to nine months for “go-to” areas and 18 months beyond them.
Pending the conclusion in 2023 of the negotiations between the states and the MEPs, the European Commission proposed at the beginning of November to take a measure of an urgent nature, with a duration of one year, to immediately limit the licensing deadlines for the installation of heat pumps and photovoltaic panels in buildings , respectively in three months and in one month, without the need to assess the environmental impact.
Energy ministers yesterday gave the green light to this temporary measure, which is enough to bring it into force.
RES-EMP
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