EU meets energy efficiency target six years early

(EurActiv, 31 Aug 2016) Energy efficiency in the European Union is constantly improving. But this could be as much down to the economic downturn as its own efforts, a new study has found. EurActiv’s partner Journal de l’Environnement reports.

A study carried out by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC) found that the EU’s final energy consumption fell by 6.35% between 2000 and 2014.

On paper this may not look like much. But by cutting out 72 million tonnes of oil equivalent (mtoe), the EU has saved the equivalent of the annual energy consumption of Finland.

What is more, the Commission said, the EU-28 have already achieved the energy efficiency objective fixed for 2020 under the climate and energy package.

The three 20s

Adopted in 2008, this string of measures committed the 28 member states to cutting their greenhouse gas emissions by 20% between 1990 and 2020, to produce 20% of their energy from renewable sources and to improve their energy efficiency by 20%.

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EurActiv, 31 Aug 2016: EU meets energy efficiency target six years early