Publications

Promoting Renewable District Heating – Seven Policy Recommendations

The heating transition is an indispensable building block to achieve climate neutrality. The long investment
cycles in this area, coupled with the high risk of carbon lock-in, make it particularly important to act
quickly. This also applies to district heating. Germany and the EU must urgently abandon the complex
system of subsidies in favour of fossil heat that is currently in place. Environmental Action Germany (DUH) makes in this paper seven recommendations to government that can make district heating a pioneer in decarbonising building heat.

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Promoting Renewable District Heating – Seven Policy Recommendations

Project

Energy Transformation Debate in CEE

Ready for the Wave? Overlooked aspects of the Renovation Wave Initiative

While the Renovation Wave includes many promising initiatives and shows forward-looking thinking on the part of the Commission, many details are still unclear and significant gaps remain. In particular, legislation on building circularity and life-cycle approaches should not be postponed to after 2023. Also, fighting energy poverty should be an integral aspect of EU policy design, particularly regarding current plans to adopt a carbon price for heating and transport. The design of compensation mechanisms for low income households facing rising heating expenses should not be left to Member States. Kickstarting a sustainable heating transition requires much broader changes than the Renovation Wave foresees as the current regulatory framework offers numerous advantages to fossil heating. In this background paper, Environmental Action Germany (Deutsche Umwelthilfe, DUH) highlights three areas of the Renovation Wave initiative that have received comparatively little attention but are nevertheless crucial to the overall success of the initiative: Circular buildings and life-cycle approaches, kickstarting a sustainable heating transition and the social dimension of energy renovation.

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Ready for the Wave? Overlooked aspects of the Renovation Initiative

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Energy Transformation Debate in CEE

Distribution Grids and Electromobility – Planning and Development

The electrification of the transport sector is one of the most effective and fastest methods of transport decarbonisation. The efficient development of electric vehicles will require well-planned and wisely developed grid infrastructure, which until now has not been adapted to handle such a large scale of new equipment. What does the expansion of electromobility mean for the energy system? How will grids cope with the rapid development of this field and how do we plan their future growth?

This study by Forum Energii analyses several scenarios for the development of electromobility and the impact of their implementation on national distribution grids. As part of the Int-E-Grid EUKI project, it offers an assessment that focuses on the challenges for distribution networks associated with the development of electric transport. The implementation of the discussed scenarios along with the decarbonisation of the energy mix will allow for the reduction of GHG emissions from transport by up to two-thirds by 2050.

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Distribution Grids and Electromobility – Planning and Development

Project

Int-E-Grid: Powering Electromobility in Poland and Germany

Long-term Climate Planning in Central Eastern Europe – Project Report

According to the EU Governance Regulation, Member States were required to prepare (and submit to the European Commission by 1 January 2020) national long-term strategies (LTS) to present their climate and energy transition pathway, with a perspective of at least 30 years, towards the target of the EU 2050 climate neutrality.

This report summarizes the achievements of the EUKI project Capacity Building for Ambitious Long-Term Strategies, implemented by CAN Europe together with MTVSZ – Friends of the Earth Hungary, Center for Transport and Energy (Czechia) and Institute for Sustainable Development (Poland) that aimed on improving the quality of these long-term decarbonisation strategies in six Central Eastern European countries – Czechia, Hungary, Poland, as well as Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia – by enhancing a multi-stakeholder dialogue on a cross-sectoral approach to long-term planning and developing positive narratives on the co-benefits of climate action and energy transition for the economy and society.

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Long-term climate planning in Central Eastern Europe – Project Report

Project

Capacity Building for Ambitious Long-Term Strategies

EUKI Press Review 4/2021

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI) regularly produces a press review, which reflects the international reporting on the financing programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and on the work involved in the projects. The selected articles are derived from submissions by project-implementing organisations and from in-house research. The present edition covers reporting from October to December 2021.

EUKI Press Review 3/2021

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI) regularly produces a press review, which reflects the international reporting on the financing programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and on the work involved in the projects. The selected articles are derived from submissions by project-implementing organisations and from in-house research. The present edition covers reporting from July to September 2021.

EUKI Press Review 2/2021

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI) regularly produces a press review, which reflects the international reporting on the financing programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and on the work involved in the projects. The selected articles are derived from submissions by project-implementing organisations and from in-house research. The present edition covers reporting from April to June 2021.

EUKI Press Review 1/2021

The European Climate Initiative (EUKI) regularly produces a press review, which reflects the international reporting on the financing programme of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and on the work involved in the projects. The selected articles are derived from submissions by project-implementing organisations and from in-house research. The present edition covers reporting from January to March 2021.

Visegrad Electromobility – State, perspectives and challenges

Transport accounts for a large share of greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union and is the only sector in which emissions have been increasing in recent years. The goal of climate neutrality and the increased reduction target for 2030 will not be achievable without a revolution in transport, as confirmed by the ‘Fit for 55’ package published by the European Commission. Electrification of transport, especially of passenger cars, is therefore a key element in reducing transport emissions.

This report from Forum Energii describes the status and prospects for the development of electromobility in the Visegrad countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Hungary), the challenges of reversing current emission trends in road transport as well as how to use the existing potential of sectoral cooperation in the V4 countries.

The publication was published under the framework of EUKI project Int-E-Grid: Powering Electromobility in Poland and Germany and introduces strategies and appropriate measures, such as the V4-route, for the implementation of effective policies to reduce emissions from transport through electrification.

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Visegrad Electromobility – State, perspectives and challenges

Project

Int-E-Grid: Powering Electromobility in Poland and Germany

BEACON Final Report: From Ideas to Action

Supporting municipalities, schools and national governments in the transition to climate neutrality – Final report of the Bridging European and Local Climate Action project

Examples of successful local climate change mitigation measures can be found all across Europe. Municipalities, local communities, and younger generations are shaping the path towards net-zero emissions. To show what role local and regional actors play in reaching national and EU climate goals, BEACON has drawn data from evaluations with more than 25 municipality and 40 school staff members of the BEACON countries. This report summarises the achievements of the BEACON project in five steps: 1. Identifying needs and creating support structures 2. Establishing cross-border networks and collaboration 3. Building capacities and raising awareness 4. Developing long-term strategies, supporting ambitious policies and vertical collaboration 5. Creating ideas and finally, implementing projects. The report is accompanied by the BEACON project’s final brochure From Action to Impact .

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From Ideas to Action – BEACON Final Report 

Project