All EU countries in 2019 had to submit a national energy and climate plan to the European Commission, setting out how they will achieve the bloc’s goal of cutting CO2 emissions by 55% by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050.
“Anyone who thinks climate change isn’t happening is living on another planet,” said prime minister (DP) during a press conference on Monday, presenting a draft update of the plan.
Under EU rules, member countries must submit a revised version of their plan (NECP) to Brussels by 30 June this year. This is meant to give countries the opportunity to take stock of how far they’ve come, take into account the latest research and science, and review national targets accordingly.
The updated plan includes 197 measures in a range of areas, from industry, transport and buildings to waste management and land use and forestry.
The government is raising a target to increase the share of renewables from 11% in 2020 to 35-37% by 2030. This is up from a previous target of 25%. “Climate protection means replacing fossil fuels as quickly as possible,” said energy minister (déi Gréng). “It’s a Herculean task.”
The 2030 target for wind energy though, for example, will be achieved by 2025. Bettel and Turmes are set to meet other EU leaders at the North Sea Summit in Ostende, Belgium, on 24 April with the aim to speed up the production of renewables.
The government is also looking to decrease energy demand by 44% by 2030 by becoming more energy efficient. This compares to a previous target that ranged between 40-44%.
According to analyses by Statec, the new and updated measures in the energy and climate plan will allow Luxembourg to reduce emissions by 58% by 2030. With the existing measures in the previous version of the plan, emissions would only have been reduced by 35%.
This at a projected population growth of 63% compared to the reference year 2005 and GDP growth of 87%. “I find this relatively impressive,” said economy minister (LSAP).
However, the new measures fall short of climate neutrality by 2050, reaching just 91%, although a spokesperson for Statec said its models do not include carbon capture measures.
Climate council proposals
The updated NECP takes into account feedback by the citizens’ climate council, convened by the government last year to develop proposals and recommendations on how Luxembourg should tackle the climate crisis. The council presented 142 measures of which five were newly introduced to the NECP while more than a dozen others were added to strengthen actions already included in the 2019 version.
More public feedback will find its way into the final document as the plan is open to from 17 April to 16 May. Citizens and organisations such as NGOs or lobby groups can submit their opinions on the plan.
Just under 330 people and 30 NGOs submitted their feedback on the last energy and climate plan, including environmental groups but also business and industry lobbies.
As part of the plan, Luxembourg set sector-specific CO2 targets for five different areas: industry, manufacturing and construction; transport; agriculture; waste and wastewater management; and residential and tertiary buildings, which includes anything from offices and schools to hospitals.
While Luxembourg overall , emitting the equivalent of 8,073,000 tonnes of CO2 in 2021, a closer look reveals discrepancies between the different sectors. Only transport and agriculture managed to meet their sector-specific goals, with the other three areas exceeding their carbon budget.
“In different areas we have more urgent challenges,” said environment minister (déi Gréng).
The 2030 target is annual emissions of 4,500,000 tonnes, down from 10,100,000 tonnes in 2005, which serves as there year of reference for the targeted rates. During the pandemic lockdown year 2020, emissions had dropped to 7,700,000 tonnes of CO2.
“The economy must clearly contribute its part to this effort. And it does,” said Fayot, adding that companies know they will become “stranded assets” if they don’t invest in decarbonisation but also conceding that this represents substantial and long-term investments.
The measures in the plan, from mandatory energy audits and consulting for small and medium-sized enterprises to subsidies, should contribute to “an economy that’s moving towards climate neutrality but remains competitive,” the minister said.
A macro-economic analysis and a budgetary projection for the new measures are still ongoing and there is no price tag yet to the plan. “It’s not a luxury,” said Bettel. “It’s a responsibility that we have.”