The European Geothermal Energy Council (EGEC), the voice of the European geothermal industry, calls on the European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen to create a European internal market for heat."The focus on fossil gas is not compatible with the Paris Agreement nor the European Commission's efforts on climate-neutrality. The EU cannot pursue a zero-carbon policy whilst institutionalizing dependence on fossil fuel," says Philippe Dumas, Secretary-General, EGEC.
According to EGEC, the current interpretation by the European Commission of the internal energy market gives an unfair advantage to electricity and fossil gas, at the expense of renewable heat. As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has brought Europe’s economy almost to a standstill, immediate measures to create new business opportunities in the green economy are needed.
A European Internal Market for Heat is one of them as EGEC has pointed out to the Commission in a recently published open letter.
Heat represents half of the EU’s energy consumption and about 80 percent of this heat energy consumption comes from fossil fuels. Fossil gas is not subjected to a carbon price. On top of this, Governments and EU institutions keep supporting fossil fuels through direct and indirect public subsidies for infrastructure, appliances and fuel consumption.
This situation locks out renewable solutions for heating and cooling services and prevents their development in all Member States.
The focus on fossil gas is not compatible with the Paris Agreement nor the European Commission’s efforts on climate-neutrality. The EU cannot pursue a zero-carbon policy whilst institutionalizing dependence on fossil fuel. The internal market for heat would unleash much-needed investments in employment-rich renewable energy sources while addressing the economic crisis, said Philippe Dumas, Secretary-General, EGEC.
