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South-North Corridor GRIP 2017 |
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4.1 The EU Energy Strategy
The European Energy Strategy is based on the pursuit of the following three main
objectives:
\\
Security of supply
\\
Competitiveness
\\
Sustainability
These objectives have been modeled on the fundamental challenges Europe has to
cope with, specifically:
\\
Dependence on external energy sources:
imports cover more than half of the
overall energy consumption, with an expected upward trend which could
increase the vulnerability to supply disruptions.
\\
Increasing energy costs
for households and industry, linked to a rising global
demand and to the necessity of restructuring the energy market.
\\
Global warming
and the need to decarbonise the European economy without
affecting its competitiveness on the international markets.
A series of policy tools and related actions have been designed in order to reach the
European primary energy goals. The most significant developments are expected to
be driven by the following key policy areas:
\\
The creation of a
European Energy Union
, in order to ensure secure, affordable
and climate-friendly energy supplies, able to freely flow across national borders
within Europe.
\\
The definition of a
European Energy Security Strategy
which presents short-
and long-term measures to ensure the security of supply of the Member States,
including the support to the internal energy production.
\\
The establishment of the
Internal Energy Market
as a resilient, integrated and
competitive energy market across the EU, supported by adequate infrastructural
enhancements and regulatory arrangements.
\\
The development of renewable energy sources and promotion of energy
efficiency, by formulating targets for 2020
(2020 Energy Strategy
1)
)
,
2030
(2030 Energy Strategy
2)
)
and 2050
(Energy Roadmap 2050
3)
)
, and
adopting a challenging long-term strategy with progressively tougher objectives.
In the following paragraphs each of the main EU energy strategy objectives is
examined, with particular attention to natural gas and the related infrastructure as
key components of the current and future European energy mix.
1) So-called 20-20-20 targets: reduction of GHG by at least 20%, increase of the share of renewable energy to at least
20% of consumption, improvement of energy efficiency by at least 20%.
2) Objectives by 2030: 40% cut in GHG emissions compared to 1990 levels; at least a 27% share of renewable energy
consumption; increase of energy efficiency of at least 27%, to be potentially raised to 30%.
3) EU targets for 2050: reduction of GHG of 80% to 95% compared to 1990 levels.