Europaudvalget 2019-20
EUU Alm.del Bilag 781
Offentligt
2216098_0001.png
European Commission
EU’s 2030 climate target
plan. Response to
public consultation by the Committee on
Climate, Energy and Utilities and the
European Affairs Committee of the Danish
Parliament.
The Committee on Climate, Energy and Utilities and the European Affairs
Committee of the Danish Parliament strongly welcome the Commission’s in-
tention to present, by September 2020, an impact assessed plan to increase
EU’s
greenhouse gas emission reductions target for 2030 to at least 50 per-
cent and towards 55 percent compared with 1990 levels.
The Commission's priorities correspond well with Denmark’s
ambitious cli-
mate policy including the targets of reaching 70 percent reduction of green-
house gas emissions by 2030 and climate neutrality by 2050. For the commit-
tees, it is vital that the EU takes global lead in order to meet the objectives of
the Paris Agreement. The committees therefore strongly encourage the Com-
mission to present an ambitious 2030 target of at least 55 percent. In addi-
tion, it is important that the increased 2030 target is embedded in the Euro-
pean Climate Law proposed by the Commission on 4 March 2020
To reach an increased level of climate ambitions by 2030, the committees
would like to present specific recommendations related to offshore energy
and transport, in particular the modelling of the costs of offshore wind and the
transition to zero-emission passenger cars.
Modelling costs of offshore wind
The committees have noted that offshore wind is set to play a major role in
reaching the EU’s climate target.
As a global leader in the field of offshore
wind, the committees find Denmark in a position to expand the offshore wind
capacity significantly. The committees see a great potential in the expansion
of offshore wind, which will help ensure that 55
percent of the nation’s energy
demand is covered by renewable energy by 2030.
11 June 2020
J.nr.: 20-000458-1
Skriv navn og tryk F11
Skriv titel og tryk F11
Skriv mailnavn og tryk F11
Skriv tlf. nr. og tryk F11
Skriv parti/afd. og tryk
F11
Christiansborg
1240 København K
3337 5500
[email protected]
www.ft.dk
Side 1 | 3
 EUU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 781: Høringssvar til Kommissionen om plan for at øge EU's reduktionsmål for 2030
2216098_0002.png
The Danish Government has recently published the first initiatives in an up-
coming climate plan, which included two energy islands, ushering in a new
era for offshore wind energy in Europe. The committees note that while off-
shore wind farms traditionally have been built as individual non-connected
entities, energy islands can serve as a hub for electricity generation for the
surrounding wind farms as well. This could be done by collecting and distrib-
uting the electricity between countries connected by an electricity grid. En-
ergy islands could help Denmark lower both national and EU-wide emissions,
when increasing export of renewable electricity to other countries both in the
North Sea and in the Baltic Sea. For the committees, this reaffirms the im-
portance of modelling the costs of offshore wind for the EU overall.
In recent years, we have seen that many low and zero emission technologies
have matured and become cost-effective at a rapid pace, which has trans-
formed the business case for investing in low and zero emission technolo-
gies. This is also the conclusion of for
example the IEA’s Wind Energy
Out-
look 2019 that in addition expects further significant cost reduction of offshore
wind energy.
For the committees, it is therefore vital that the Commission ensures the in-
clusion of these developments in scenario analyses by continuously and sys-
tematically updating the modelling assumptions to reflect recent develop-
ments in costs and technological advances. If the relative costs of clean tech-
nologies and conventional technologies are not accurately reflected in sce-
nario analyses, we risk sidelining technologies that otherwise could deliver
better solutions for the green transition.
The committees find it positive that the Commission has taken initial steps to
address this issue by initiating the development of e.g. the new POTEnCIA-
model. The open and inclusive approach taken by the Commission holds
great potential for the future modelling in the EU.
With these recommendations, the committees look forward to the Commis-
sion’s
presentation of a strategy for offshore
renewable energy in the fourth
quarter of 2020.
Transition to zero-emission passenger cars
Passenger cars account for around 12 percent
of EU’s total CO2-emissions,
and transport is the only major sector in the EU where greenhouse gas emis-
sions are still increasing.
The Commission’s
analysis
accompanying ‘A Clean
Planet for All’
demonstrates that no new diesel or petrol cars should be sold
Side 2 | 3
 EUU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 781: Høringssvar til Kommissionen om plan for at øge EU's reduktionsmål for 2030
2216098_0003.png
after 2040 in the EU if we are to reach climate neutrality by 2050. There is an
urgent need to accelerate the uptake of zero-emission passenger cars in the
EU over the coming years.
Several member states, including Denmark, have announced plans for phas-
ing out new petrol and diesel cars. The ambition of the Danish government is
to ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars by 2030. However, current EU
legislation, might limit the ability to speed up and move forward with
measures for phasing out petrol and diesel cars. The committees therefore
call on the Commission to ensure that EU legislation allows member states to
take further action. The committees further encourage the Commission to
present a plan outlining EU-wide policies and incentives enabling the transi-
tion to a fleet of zero-emission passenger cars. The committees also wel-
comes and look forward to concrete measures in the coming strategy for sus-
tainable and smart mobility to be presented by the Commission in the fourth
quarter of 2020.
The committees encourage the Commission to consider these recommenda-
tions, as it prepares to present
its plan to increase EU’s greenhouse gas
emission reductions target for 2030.
Yours Sincerely,
Rasmus Helveg Petersen
Chair of the Committee on Climate, Energy and Utilities
The Danish Parliament
Eva Kjer Hansen
Chair of the European Affairs Committee
The Danish Parliament
Side 3 | 3