Status of the Implementation of Biofuels and Bioenergy Certification Systems

Biofuels certification is a response to the concerns related to the biofuels sustainability. There are several existing certification schemes related to sustainability in other fields, varying considerably in scope, as were developed for a wide range of products as a result of various concerns (Van Dam et al., 2007, BTG, 2008). Some systems cover one of the areas in biomass production, such as agriculture, forest and fair trade. They provide insight into the structures of certification systems (design, implementation constraints, cost-benefits¿) as well as operational experience and effectiveness. Some schemes include sustainability criteria that could be adapted for bioenergy and biofuels certification, and provide a useful experience for the development of a biofuels certification scheme, or for benchmarking. The report analyses the status of implementation of several European and Non-European certification schemes in connection with the EU current legislative framework. Several of these schemes are undergoing the recognition process, but none of them has been already recognized at the moment.JRC.F.7-Renewable Energ

Workshop Data Gathering on Renewable Energies for New Member States and Candidate Countries

The present Proceedings include the presentations made at the Workshop Data Gathering on Renewable Energies for New Member States and Candidate Countries, which was held on 15-16 November 2006 in Cavtat-Dubrovnik, Croatia. The workshop was organised by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission - Institute for Environment and Sustainability, Renewable Energies Unit Action: Scientific Technical Reference System on Renewable Energy and Energy End-use Efficiency, in cooperation with the Energy Institute Hrvoje Pozar, Croatia. The primary aim of workshop was the collection of the data on the latest achievements in the field of Renewable Energy in the New Member States and Candidate Countries. The governmental and institutional specialists and scientists in the field of sustainable energy development presented the latest information and on RES development at EU level and market developments in their own countries. The presence, for the first time of the specialists from West Balkan Countries at a workshop organised by JRC for RES was an important extra added value. The key note speeches of the experts from European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) and International Energy Agency (IEA) provided a general view on the latest data on the trends and developments of RES at international level. The completeness of presentations, the wealth of newest, updated and complementary information on RES brought together by the workshop participants, contributed to the achievements of the meeting objectives and represents a great success.JRC.H.8-Renewable energie

Snapshots of renewable energy developments in the European Union. Status in 2010 and progress in comparison with National Renewable Energy Action Plans.

This report presents a snapshot of the use of renewable energy in the European Union in 2010, the progress and the deviations from the targets set in the National Renewable Energy Action Plans. The report describe the developments in the overall contribution of renewable energy in each Member State since 2005 according to their first Progress Reports, the progress made in the use of each renewable energy source and their share in heating and cooling, electricity and in transport sector.JRC.F.7-Renewable Energ

Renewable Energy Progress in EU 27 (2005-2020)

The report present the combined analysis of EU 27 National Renewable Energy Action Plans and Progress Reports to identify the 2005-2010 and 2010-2020 trends of the renewable energy development in three main sectors: Electricity, Heating/Cooling and Transport. The planned development of these sectors and each renewable technology in EU 27 is compared with the actual development achieved in the same time span and the expected trend to reach 2020 target is compared with the planned one.JRC.F.7-Renewable Energ

Brief on biomass for energy in the European Union

This brief on biomass for energy is one out of a series of briefs from the EC's Knowledge Centre for Bioeconomy which intend to provide independent evidence for EU policy in this field. The following are the key results: 1. Biomass for energy (bioenergy) continues to be the main source of renewable energy in the EU3, with a share of almost 60%. The heating and cooling sector is the largest end-user, using about 75% of all bioenergy. 2. Bioenergy contributes to the EU’s energy security, as most of the demand is met from domestically produced biomass (about 96% in 2016). 3. Forestry is the main source of biomass for energy (logging residues, wood-processing residues, fuelwood, etc.). Wood pellets, mainly for heating and electricity production, have become an important energy carrier. 4. Germany, France, Italy, Sweden and the UK are the largest bioenergy consumers in absolute terms, while the Scandinavian and Baltic countries, as well as Austria, consume the most bioenergy per capita. 5. Bioenergy can play a key role in achieving the EU's renewable energy targets for 2030 and beyond. However, biomass for energy must be produced, processed and used in a sustainable and efficient way in order to optimise greenhouse gas savings and maintain ecosystem services, all without causing deforestation or degradation of habitats or loss of biodiversity.JRC.D.1-Bio-econom

SNAPSHOT OF RENEWABLE ENERGY DEVELOPMENT IN THE EU-28 Volume 2

This report presents a snapshot of the current state of renewable energy development in the European Union and the progress expected by 2020, as forecasted in the Member States’ national renewable energy action plans. The report compares the progress achieved between 2005 and 2012 as that reported by EU Member States in their bi- annual progress reports with the expected results, as set out in their action plans and . It goes on to describe in details each Member State’s overall contribution to the development of renewable energy since 2005. The findings draw on the Member States’ bi-annual progress reports, the progress each country has made in the use of each renewable energy source and the contribution of renewable energy in each Member State to the heating/cooling, electricity and transport sectors are summarized in standardized tables and graphs allowing quick comparison among different countries and for EU as a whole.JRC.F.7-Renewables and Energy Efficienc

Mitigating Climate Change: Renewables in the EU: Cutting greenhouse gas emissions through renewables: Volume 2

The energy sector accounts for the lion’s share (55 %) of greenhouse gas emissions in the European Union (EU). While EU emissions had fallen by 22.1 % in 2015 compared with 1990, and continue to fall, the bloc’s economy grew by 27 % over that period. Since the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) entered into force, use of renewables has continued to grow in the 3 EU sectors that consume most energy (electricity, heating/ cooling and transport). This has done much to cut emissions. While the renewable share in gross final energy consumption rose from 12.4 % in 2009 to almost 17 % in 2015, EU emissions fell year-on-year by an annual average of 8.5 %. Fossil fuels are increasingly being displaced by renewables. The displacement between 1990 and 2015 amounted to 139 Mtoe equal to 11.5 % of the gross inland consumption of fossil fuels. The electricity sector accounted for almost 40 % of this displacement, with rapidly growing new technologies such as wind and photovoltaics accounting for almost 18 % of total fossil fuel displacement. Without renewable energy sources, total emissions in the EU would have been 8.7 % higher in 2009, 13.8 % higher in 2014 and 14.4 % higher in 2015. This report represents an integrated analysis and provides: (i) a concise overview of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) and aggregated emissions (in both the ETS and the ESD sectors), including recent trends in the EU as a whole, and in individual EU countries; (ii) an assessment of the role played by renewables in mitigating climate change in the EU and individual countries between 2009 and 2014; and (iii) a proxy estimate of emissions savings through the use of renewables in 2015.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

Renewable energy deployment in the European Union: Renewable energy in the European Union further to Renewable Energy Directive reporting, Vol. 3

This report presents an overview of renewable energy development and progress expected by 2020, as forecasted in the EU Member States’ reporting under the Renewable Energy Directive and projected in the EU Reference 2016 and EUCO27 scenarios. The report compares the progress achieved between 2005 and 2015, as reported by EU Member States in their progress reports and the Eurostat SHARES Tool, with the expected results as set out in their national renewable energy action plans. The report goes on to describe in detail each Member State’s overall contribution to the development of renewable energy since 2005. The findings draw on the Member States’ reporting under the Renewable Energy Directive, the progress each country has made in the use of each renewable energy source and the contribution of renewable energy in each Member State to the heating/cooling, electricity and transport sectors. Findings are summarised in standardised tables and graphs, enabling quick comparison between different countries and for the EU as a whole.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

Covenant of Mayors in Figures: 8-year Assessment

The European Commission’s initiative Covenant of Mayors (CoM), one of the world’s largest urban climate and energy initiatives, involving more than seven thousand local and regional authorities, proves that climate change has moved to the forefront of urban priorities. Its integrated approach is in line with a number of EU priorities not only concerning mitigation and adaptation but also in terms of embracing a robust transparency framework for the implementation of the Paris agreement. The Covenant of Mayors in figures 8-year assessment report, based on the data collected in the CoM platform as of September 2016, aims at providing an overall picture of the achievement and projections made by the signatories in terms of greenhouse gas emissions and the related energy consumptions. Developing a sustainable energy and climate action plan that requires the establishment of a baseline emission inventory, target setting and the adoption of policy measures is already a tangible achievement for cities. This is the first step towards an effective, transparent system for tracking progress and concrete results. Ultimately, the report emphasis that strong urban energy policies and increased involvement of citizens is of vital importance in the potential of urban mitigation of global climate change.JRC.C.2-Energy Efficiency and Renewable

Status Report 2006

The European Union is implementing challenging commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 8% in accord with the Kyoto protocol, and has established ambitious targets for renewable energies and energy end-use efficiency in its White Paper: Energy for the Future: Renewable Sources of Energy. In the past decade, renewable energy technologies have made significant progress in terms of performance, cost and reliability, thanks to vigorous research, development, demonstration and market introduction programmes at European, national and also regional level. Developments primarily rooted in environmental concerns are now penetrating all societal decision making and have led to a new, dynamic, and exponentially growing industry. Three major drivers are determining today’s socio-economic framework for the impressive renewables’ industrial and market developments. First, successful application of legally binding feed-in tariffs; secondly, liberalisation of the electricity market, and thus new possibilities for decentralisation of power generation. Third, and in the medium term, there is the undisputed need for massive re-powering the larger part of Europe’s generation capacity. This will incur generally higher electricity costs, which reflect somewhat better the real costs (incl. externalities) of all the different energy technologies. Thus a more favourable market situation for sustainable technology choices will evolve, e.g. for massive renewable power generation. While technology development has been a key driver in the progress of renewables, first examples of significant penetration would have been impossible without appropriate, supporting policies including instruments such as introduction targets, carbon taxes, elimination of non-technical barriers, internalisation of external costs of energy, and harmonisation of market rules. The efficient end-use of energy is a parallel area where modern technology, policies, better public conscience of the issues and market forces, like the utilities’ interest to exploit the potentials for avoidance of new transmission and generation capacity, have combined to achieve significant results. New integrated marketing concepts, like energy service companies, have been very successful lately, and organisationally break ground for the implementation of sharper physical efficiency concepts as well. This is of particular strategic importance for the New Member States of the EU, as the use of energy, including electricity, in these countries is still significantly less efficient than in the old Member States. The aim of this Status Report is to provide relevant, validated and independent information on renewable energy and the efficient end-use of electricity to decision makers and the public.JRC.H.8-Renewable energie