With the world facing environmental catastrophe from climate change, and calls for Europe to stop using all fossil fuels, why is the EU continuing to allow investment in gas infrastructure? Nord Stream 2 is entering the final stage of its construction after Denmark issued a permit to lay the pipe in its territorial waters. But…
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) says it backs the Commission’s proposal for implementing national energy and climate plans and points to the key role civil society organisations have to play in nurturing the culture of sustainability essential for Europe’s future. Europe has no future unless it develops a culture of sustainability, one that…
A new inquiry published by a widely read digital Spanish paper reveals how Spain came to have the most luxurious gas infrastructure in Europe, with huge overcapacity, largely funded by the consumer. This fight echoes a wider battle across the EU over the role of gas in the energy transition, where EU decision makers are continuing to support…
Coal-producing regions should receive money from the European Union to support their move away from fossil fuels, the European Committee of the Regions said on 9 October. However, the EU’s assembly for local and regional leaders insisted that support should not be at the expense of other regions. The call by local and regional leaders…
The EU has been urged to set more ambitious targets for renewables in meeting Europe’s future energy needs. Speaking at a recent conference in the European Parliament, Mihai Paun, of the Romanian Energy Centre, said he believes a 100 per cent target is possible by the year 2030. At present, the EU has set a…
An international expert has defended the upcoming launch of the world’s first ever floating nuclear power station. Despite attracting criticism from some green activists, the massive vessel, called “Akademik Lomonosov”, is due to be launched on 23 August. Oscar Voss, of the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, said that any perceived risks involved may be…
In its yearly opinion on the State of the Energy Union, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has taken stock of the progress made so far and calls on the European Commission to focus more on social aspects. It says, “The Energy Union is not a reality yet. It may be a reality in…
The European Parliament was the venue last week for a roundtable discussion highlighting the potential health risks of mineral wool, or Man-made Vitreous Fibres (MMVF) as it is also known. Mineral wool is a type of thermal insulation made from rocks and minerals. After asbestos was banned in most countries in the 1990s, the de facto replacement…
The most urgent issue in EU-Ukraine relations today is the protection of Ukraine’s nuclear power industry from a conspiracy of the oligarchs, writes James Wilson. Energoatom has been starved of a fair share of market revenues for years by the unfair Rotterdam Plus formula to calculate tariff shares for producers, ostensibly to take account of…
EU ministers meeting at an Energy Council and a General Affairs Council this week will discuss respectively the priorities for the future energy infrastructure and for the future EU Cohesion Policy funding for climate action in the regions. According to the current state of play of negotiations, EU Member States, as they plan to continue investments…
