On February 26th, the Commission has published an Action Plan for Affordable Energy with the purpose of containing energy prices and ensuring the competitiveness of the EU’s economy. The Action Plan comes out along with other measures: the Clean Industrial Deal and the Omnibus Package. 

The Plan outlines 8 actions to reduce energy costs and help the Energy Union deliver competitiveness, security, decarbonisation and a just transition. The Commission is right in recognising decarbonisation as one of the main enablers for more affordable energy, Bellona highlights however that we must safeguard that the actions in the plan in fact contribute to this end: 

• Public funding and efforts must focus on expanding and modernising electricity grids for energy transition. Hydrogen should be reserved for applications where electrification is not feasible and its infrastructure accordingly dimensioned. 

• Long-term LNG commitments and infrastructure investments that risk prolonging fossil fuel dependence must be avoided. Instead, renewable energy and efficiency measures should be prioritised to ensure energy security, price stability, and decarbonisation. 

• A system-level approach to energy efficiency must be adopted to promote solutions that increase overall system efficiency, including the production and conversion losses associated to each carrier. 

Context: 

Energy prices are at the heart of economic competitiveness, one of the main policy drivers of the new Commission. The Affordable Energy Action Plan comes as a response to the high energy prices that have been harming citizens and economic activity in the last few years. However, the Commission must ensure that the Plan does not only address affordability concerns but also accelerates the transition to a sustainable, just energy system.