New analysis from the Coalition for Energy Savings of implementation of the EU Energy Efficiency Directive shows that the European Union is still only beginning to remove regulatory and non-regulatory barriers to deploying energy efficiency measures that could save vast amounts of energy. The removal of these barriers, such as the inappropriate Eurostat rules on public debt and deficit for investments in energy efficiency improvements, will help tap Europe's huge potential for energy savings at no cost to the public purse.
By 2030, the European Union could cost-effectively reach a 40% energy efficiency target, bringing numerous environmental, economic and social benefits. Achieving these benefits would require lifting structural and institutional barriers to energy efficiency investments, such as split incentives between property owners and tenants and accounting rules and annual budgeting for public bodies. The Energy Efficiency Directive (2012/27/EU), the EU's flagship instrument to tackle inefficiency in energy use, requires Member States to screen these barriers and report on the measures they are taking to remove them.
