Europe aims to double electricity’s share of final energy use to 46% by 2040, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, backing a global pledge to expand electricity use.
The goal would increase electricity’s role in the energy consumed by households, businesses and other users. Von der Leyen presented it alongside Europe’s emissions targets and support for clean energy investment in developing countries.
She set out the commitments at COP31 in remarks published Nov. 11 on the European Parliament’s own channel. The remarks represent the European Commission president’s account of Europe’s climate policies and progress.
Von der Leyen said she supported the global electrification pledge called “35 by35” and encouraged others to join. She did not explain the pledge’s numerical target or specify additional funding for Europe’s electrification action plan.
The International Energy Agency has found that the global goal is achievable and could lower energy costs for consumers, reduce energy emissions and improve energy security, she said.
More than 70% of European Union electricity came from clean sources last year, von der Leyen said. The proposed increase in electricity’s share of final energy use would extend the shift beyond electricity generation to how energy is consumed.
Europe is on track to meet its 2030 target of cutting emissions by more than half, she said. It has also set a course to reduce emissions by 90% by 2040.
She linked those targets to Europe’s ambition to become the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, meaning it would balance remaining emissions with measures that remove them. She did not give a baseline year for either emissions reduction figure.
Europe contributed more than 32 billion euros last year to help developing countries address climate change, von der Leyen said. She described Europe as the world’s largest provider of climate finance.
The EU’s Global Gateway investment programme has also mobilised more than 300 billion euros in sustainable investments, she said. She gave no period for that total or breakdown of the investments.
Von der Leyen linked the need for action to floods in Nepal, droughts from Sudan to Central America and one of Europe’s worst wildfire seasons on record this summer.
She also said disruptions to energy supplies through the Strait of Hormuz were shaking global energy markets, connecting climate policy with the security of energy supplies.
The world is on course to exceed the 1.5-degree warming target, she said, citing the United Nations’ latest findings. “Every fraction of a degree matters,” she said.
