Integrated national energy and climate plans: transport decarbonisation options for Member States

(EurActiv, 19 Nov 2018) Transport decarbonisation poses many challenges and requires significant actions by EU Member States (MS) between now and 2030. Each MS is obliged to prepare Integrated National Energy and Climate Plans (INECPs) and to submit this to the European Commission by December 2018. MS are currently preparing their plans.

The role of sustainable energy in road transport is an important piece of the INECPs puzzle. In advance of the December deadline, Ecofys, an energy consultancy, is preparing a study projecting the fuel mix and carbon emissions of road transport in nine MS*. Although the study focuses on CEE countries, all MS will face similar challenges.

More specifically, the report will:
– model the energy demand in road transport in these countries, taking into account expected developments in biofuel usage and electric vehicles.
– calculate CO2 emissions from transport demand, estimating these for each MS and savings from renewables.
– assess the costs of each fuel or technology.

The report will also estimate ‘carbon abatement costs’ of various transport decarbonisation pathways, feeding into a model which could help provide direction for the best mitigation pathways.

Following a presentation of the study’s highlights, the ensuing panel discussion tackled topics including:
– What are the main transport decarbonisation challenges?
– Technological pathways – what role for biofuels, advanced biofuels, electrification, biomethane?
– Carbon abatement costs of pathways – what are the climate benefits?
– How should pathways be assessed overall? What role do social and economic costs play?

* Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, and Austria

External link

EurActiv, 19 Nov 2018: Integrated national energy and climate plans: transport decarbonisation options for Member States