As part of her wider visit to the university last week, Ditte Juul Jørgensen, Director-General for Energy at the European Commission attended a roundtable discussion with experts in energy across Oxford University, including various ZERO Institute academics.
Europe has made great strides in decarbonising its electricity system, but electricity is only part of Europe’s total energy use. Buildings, industry and transport are all heavy users of fossil fuel energy and so, in total, renewables account for only a quarter of energy consumption across the European Union.
The EU has set a minimum target of 42.5% of energy consumption from renewables by 2030 which will require a huge increase in deployment rates and a profound transformation of the energy system.
In attendance to offer guidance and insight to Ms Jørgensen on topics pertinent to the EU’s energy transition were Prof Jan Rosenow, Prof Paul Shearing, Dr Tina Fawcett, Dr Sam Hampton, Dr Anupama Sen and Cassandra Etter-Wenzel.
The roundtable discussion included conversations on topics as varied as:
- Increasing building efficiency and the relevant policy levers
- The future of electric vehicles in Europe
- Electrification of the industrial sector
- The role of expanded energy storage capacity in the energy transition
- The development of localised energy systems
- Long-term energy system reform
Attendees also discussed the economic incentives for transitioning away from fossil fuels and towards electrification including a recent UK analysis that showed transitioning away from gas powered electricity would cut energy bills deeper and faster than maximising in-country production of fossil fuels.
Over a quarter of total UK energy consumption comes from renewable sources and the government is targeting emissions reductions of 68% (compared to 1990 levels) by 2030. Like the EU, progress has so far primarily been driven by decarbonisation of the electricity system, with decarbonisation in the built environment and industry, and further electricity system decarbonisation to follow.
Engaging policymakers is a key part of making real-world impact to accelerate the energy transition, and the ZERO Institute continue to focus efforts on this important part of the transformation needed.
During her 1-day visit Ditte also gave a public talk entitled Powering the Future: Europe’s path to Energy Security which can be viewed on the attached link.
