Today, the European electricity industry trade body presents a landmark study, which outlines three scenarios for achieving Europe’s climate neutrality goal.

Looking ahead to 2030, 2040 and 2050, the Decarbonisation Speedways study confirms the key role of clean electrification in accelerating Europe’s path towards climate neutrality and highlights its potential to reduce household electricity bills.

Europe’s success, however, depends on critical factors including electricity market reform, licensing, networks and industrial competitiveness.

Climate action, energy independence and re-industrialisation require an ambitious, yet realistic and balanced decarbonisation strategy for Europe. By 2050, 70% of Europe’s final fossil fuel-based energy demand in transport, buildings and industry must be decarbonised.

The study highlights that clean and renewable energy is the most cost-effective solution to limit emissions and reduce energy use thanks to its superior energy efficiency. Transport will see the biggest efficiency gains, with at least a 53% reduction in energy use in 2050 compared to 2015.

The Decarbonisation Speedways study suggests that electricity capacity will need to triple by 2040, along with a tenfold expansion of renewables and a stable base of unchanged power to cover around 4,600 TWh of final electricity demand by 2040. The achievement of such awe-inspiring numbers requires enabling policies.

Underscoring the industry’s commitment to climate neutrality, Eurelectric Chairman and E.ON CEO Leonhard Birnbaum said:

“The E.U. has extremely ambitious goals for 2030. The shift in gear we achieve in the current decade will determine our success in achieving whatever goal we set for 2040. That is why it is vital that we focus on making progress here and now. This means securing investor confidence, speeding up licensing processes for power generation and grid infrastructure, ensuring competitiveness – and modernizing our networks to manage a larger and much more complex system.”

Massive investments in power generation and infrastructure are essential for a successful energy transition. With properly designed policies, consumers could save €175 billion annually by avoiding fuel imports and benefit from lower energy bills. Reducing emissions and energy use, improving air quality, preserving biodiversity, creating jobs and competitiveness will also benefit Europe and reduce economic costs.

The need for action has never been greater. Eurelectric calls on policymakers to put in place the necessary enablers to enable the industry to achieve climate neutrality with ambition and realism.