The International Network
for Sustainable Energy

Updated: December, 2009

With targets for all EU countries for 2020, and a large number of guiding principles, the "Directive 2009/28/EC of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and amending and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC", is now the main directive for promotion of renewable energy in the EU. It was agreed in all relevant aspects in December 2008 as part of the EU climate & energy package, read here.

INFORSE-Europe sees the ambitious implementation of the renewable energy directive as important for the necessary increases in renewable energy use in the EU, but we advocate at least 25% renewable energy by 2020 as part of a sustainable development while the average of the targets in the directive are 20%.

INFORSE-Europe is developing proposals for implementation of the directive, including training requirements and sustainability of biomass. More proposals are planned for 2010.

Main Elements of the Renewable Energy Directive

The directive sets national targets for renewable energy for the 27 EU countries, adding up to a 20% EU-average renewable-energy target for 2020. Each national target is about 13% above the renewable energy use of the country in 2005.

The targets are taken as a fraction of the final energy, while energy energy mixes of countries are mostly compared with figures for primary energy. With the use of final energy as basis instead of primary energy, energy that feeds directly into the system close to the final demand (such as solar energy and windpower) is valuated higher than energies that have high losses in the conversion from primary to final energy (such as fuels for thermal power plants). The use of final energy also makes it easier to reach the target, as it is easier to reach 20% of final energy than 20% of primary energy with the current renewable energy technologies.

The targets have some potential loopholes. The main possible loophole is with renewable energy production outside EU, where the renewable energy production outside the EU can be sent to an EU country and non-renewable electricity could be sent in the other direction at other times during a year.

There is a special target of 10% renewable energy in transport. The target can be reached with biofuels that meets a number of sustainability targets, with electricity, as well as with other energy carriers such as hydrogen.

Electricity is included in the target for renewables in transports with the average, national renewable electricity fraction, or with the EU average (the countries can choose); but for road vehicles (not railways), the use of electricity is counted with the weight of 2.5. So in a country where 40% of the electricity comes from renewables, electricity in road transport is counted with a weight of 2.5 * 0.4 = 1. Unfortunately, electric railways are not favoured in this way, in the example above their electricity in only included with a weight of 0.4. The EU Commission may present by the end of 2011 a proposal for permitting a higher share of renewables in electricity for vehicles, eventually also for trains. Also a proposal for calculating the contribution of renewable hydrogen is planned for the end of 2011.

A number of criteria for sustainability of biofuels is included, but social criteria are currently addressed only subject to reporting. The effects on the ground of the other sustainability criteria for biofuels depend strongly on implementation. Therefore INFORSE-Europe has proposed guidelines for implementation of the renewable transport target and the sustainability criteria for biofuels to make the biofuel use more sustainable, read here (pdf file 61kB). INFORSE-Europe has also proposed a moratorium for import of unsustainable biofuels, read here.

Requirements for information and training will push the countries to build capacities to implement renewable energy. INFORSE-Europe has made proposals for implementation of the training provisions of the directive, read here (pdf file 123 kB).

There are efficiency requirements of biomass boilers (85% for domestic biomass boilers) that will increase performance of this equipment.

Heat pumps are included with the ambient energy that they collect. For electric heat pumps this is too favourable, as the electricity that they consume is usually much more polluting than the gas that they typically replace. There is also a minimum efficiency requirement for electric heat pumps that is easy to fulfill for most heat pumps (it requires that the heat output from a heat pumps is at least 15% higher than the primary energy needed to produce the electricity that it consumes, using the national average for electricity generation)

Countries must set minimum levels of renewables in buildings, but the minimum can be zero, if a country decides so. Minimum levels of renewables in buildings can push local renewables if they are implemented ambitiously by countries, as we have seen in Spain.

Status of Implementation

The Directive 2009/28/EC was officially, finally agreed on 23 April, 2009 and was published on 5 June, 2009 in the official journal.

The Commission adopted a template for the national action plans, June 30, 2009, (decision 2009/548/EC), read here.

The EU countries shall communicate by 31 December, 2009 their estimated excess or lack of renewable energy to meet its targets and they shall develop a National Action Plan until 30 June, 2010.

Read the full directive text here.

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