On 14 July 2021, the European Commission published its much-anticipated “Fit for 55” package. The legislative package for the EU’s climate, energy, land use, transport and taxation policies plans to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030.

The legislative proposals combine the extension of emissions trading to new sectors and a tightening of the existing EU Emissions Trading System; the increased use of renewable energy; greater energy efficiency; a faster roll-out of low emission transport modes; the alignment of taxation policies with the European Green Deal objectives; measures to prevent carbon leakage; and tools to preserve and grow natural carbon sinks.

The biggest relevance to our members is the revision of the energy efficiency directive (EED), for which the European Commission now plans to set a binding target of 32.5% savings by 2030; the revision of the Energy Taxation Directive (ETD) which proposes to align energy taxation (including energy used by electric hand dryers) with EU energy and climate policies; and EU Renewable Energy Rules which assess additional measures to accelerate the transition to a more integrated energy system. The Commission consults on all measures until early November – we will keep you updated!