State of the Union 2020 : national energy and climate plans : Member State contributions to the EU’s 2030 climate ambition.
Date: 2020-10-10
Institutions: Directorate-General for Climate Action
Subjects: EU Member State, EU energy policy, adaptation to climate change, application of EU law, climate change policy, energy efficiency, improvement of housing, reduction of gas emissions, renewable energy

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STATE OF THE UNION
2020

National Energy and Climate Plans:
Member State contributions  
to the EU’s 2030 climate ambition

September 2020

National Energy and Climate Plans (NECPs) set out how Member States will contribute 
to the EU-wide climate and energy targets from 2021 to 2030. Full implementation of 
these plans would put Europe on track to surpass its current 2030 targets for 
greenhouse gas emissions reduction and renewable energy. 

The NECPs are a springboard for the higher ambition proposed by the Commission.
They also offer crucial input for Member States’ recovery and resilience plans and just 
transition plans. 

Increased climate ambition has the potential to accelerate the modernisation of 
our economy, drive innovation and a fair transition and create long-term, 
skilled green jobs.

Current 2030 emissions 
reduction target 

Expected emissions reductions 
under existing targets

Proposed new 2030 emissions 
reduction target

40%

45%

55%

 Renewable Energy 

A climate-neutral energy system will need to rely largely on renewable sources. Our assessment 
shows that the EU27 share of renewable energy should surpass the current target by 2030.  

But  achieving  the  higher  targets  laid  out  out  in  the  2030  Climate  Target  Plan  will  require 
accelerating this progress further.

Current 2030 renewable 
energy target

Planned and existing 
measures

Share of renewables needed to 
achieve 55%

32%

33.1-33.7%

38-40%

Examples of how Member States are planning to reach their targets:

Austria plans to install 100,000 rooftop solar panels;

Lithuania plans to give financial support to consumers for installation of small-scale power plants with 
an expected outcome of 696 MW of installed capacity;

Denmark plans to make investments to achieve 4 GW of offshore wind capacity ;

France plans to launch six offshore wind tenders by 2023 aiming at 3.7 GW capacity ;

        Greece and Portugal plan to build solar farms and hydrogen infrastructure on former lignite 

mining sites.  

 Energy Efficiency 

Energy efficiency is the first priority for the clean energy transition. However, the current national 
plans show an ambition gap: 2.8 percentage points for primary energy consumption and 3.1 
percentage points for final energy consumption in the EU. 

There is additional work to be done, but we are moving in the right direction. New initiatives, 
such as the Renovation Wave, will help accelerate our efforts.

Current 2030 energy 
efficiency target

Planned and existing 
measures

Improvement in energy efficiency 
needed to achieve 55%

32.5%

29.4-29.7%

36-39%

Examples of how Member States are planning to reach their targets:

Bulgaria has set a target for renovation of more than 5% of public buildings per year;

Latvia intends to renovate 2,000 multi-apartment and 3,000 single family buildings by 2030;

Romania is planning to establish an energy efficiency investment fund financed from private, 
national and EU sources. 

© European Union, 2020
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doi:10.2834/03741 
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