Ireland's State of the Environment Report 2024

314 Chapter 12: Environment and Energy 5. EU and national energy policy 1 www.gov.ie/en/publication/a856a-national-energy-and-climate-plan-necp-2021-2030/#:~:text=The%20NECP%20will%20 act%20to,of%20Climate%20Action%20Plan%202024. (accessed 9 September 2024). 2 www.gov.ie/en/publication/e4e81-long-term-strategy-on-greenhouse-gas-emissions-reductions/ (accessed 9 September 2024). 3 eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM%3A2022%3A230%3AFIN&qid=1653033742483 (accessed 9 September 2024). There are significant policy and legislative drivers at EU and national levels that are accelerating Ireland’s energy transition. These will both enhance energy security and help deliver on climate commitments. EU energy policy The European Green Deal and associated European Climate Law (Regulation (EU) 2021/1119) are key overarching elements of EU policy that are driving changes in energy policy in Ireland and across the EU. The European Climate Law provides a legislative framework for Member States to achieve an overall reduction in GHG emissions of at least 55% by 2030, compared with 1990 levels. This ambition builds on progress to date in reducing emissions whereby, according to Eurostat, net GHG emissions reduced by 31% in the EU between 1990 and 2022. There are many elements of the European Climate Law that impact directly on Ireland’s energy sector. The EU targets for GHG emission reduction are allocated separately to sectors that participate in the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) (electricity generation, large industry and intra-EU aviation) and sectors outside the scheme, i.e. the non-ETS sectors (heat, transport and agriculture). Directive (EU) 2023/959 targets a 62% EU-wide reduction in ETS emissions by 2030 relative to 2005 levels. The ETS establishes a ‘cap-and-trade’ market that results in a carbon price for emissions associated with fossil fuel-generated electricity and for heavy users of fossil fuels. Regulation (EU) 2023/857 sets binding annual non- ETS GHG emission reductions for each Member State from 2021 to 2030 that collectively will deliver a 40% reduction in EU-wide non-ETS GHG emissions by 2030 relative to 2005 levels. Ireland’s target under this EU Effort Sharing Regulation is to achieve a 42% reduction in non-ETS GHG emissions by 2030. At EU level, the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action Regulation ((EU) 2018/1999) also requires Ireland to prepare a National Energy and Climate Plan (NECP) and a Long-term Strategy on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions. The NECP 1 describes the actions Ireland needs to take to decarbonise its energy sector in line with EU targets to 2030. Ireland’s NECP draws on the Climate Action Plan 2024 (CAP24), which is Ireland’s policy to reduce sectoral emissions and achieve its 2030 climate targets (DECC, 2024a). Ireland’s Long-term Strategy on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reductions 2 sets out Ireland’s 2050 climate action targets and describes sector-specific pathways to reaching those targets. In addition to meeting the specifications of Article 15 of the EU Regulation on the Governance of the Energy Union and Climate Action, this long-term strategy is also in line with Article 4 of the Paris Agreement. In addition to climate mitigation policies, there is a large set of energy sector-specific policies and measures encompassing renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy security and energy markets. The EU’s ambition for renewable energy has grown in recent years, driven by the leadership position taken by the EU globally on climate action. In addition, the EU’s dependence on imported fossil fuels came into sharp focus during the energy crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This prompted a specific EU policy response (REPowerEU plan 3 ) that refocused attention on maritime transport accelerating renewable energy deployment. The EU Renewable Energy Directive (2023/2413) establishes an overall EU target for the renewable energy share of overall energy use of at least 42.5% by 2030. The EU achieved its 20% renewable energy target in 2020 agreed under the original EU Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) (EC, 2024). Ireland’s 2020 target under this directive was to achieve a renewables share of 16% of gross final energy consumption by 2020. In 2020, Ireland achieved a 13.5% renewable share of energy use and purchased ‘statistical transfers’ costing €50 million to address the shortfall of 3500 GWh of renewable energy. Ireland’s target for 2030 is 43%, as set out in the National Energy and Climate Plan 2021-2030. It is important to note that this target is 43% of gross final energy consumption, that is, including heating and transport in addition to electricity.