Lessons learned from Europe’s fossil fuel energy crisis

Europe is at a pivotal moment to transition to a fossil-free energy future, and decisive actions, including policy-level commitments, are crucial to achieving this goal.

Two years have passed since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine catapulted the world into a global energy crisis, exposing the vulnerabilities of Europe’s historic reliance on fossil fuels. A wake-up call for the continent, European governments don’t have any excuse for still being in emergency response mode. Opting to rely on fossil fuels, Russian or otherwise, is neither economically nor environmentally wise. It places Europe’s security in the hands of foreign regimes and exposes households and businesses to volatile global markets.

To reduce energy bills, ensure permanent energy security, and prevent the climate emergency from deepening, we need urgent action. This means Europe’s power system must be fossil-free, fully based on renewable energy by 2035 — as strongly emphasised by the International Energy Agency’s 1.5 degree Celsius-compatible global energy scenario1.

Europe has already been taking bold steps to bolster its power system in response to the crisis, adding record numbers of solar panels and heat pumps. In 2023, wind produced more electricity than coal or gas in the European Union. Households and businesses made important energy savings, and an unusually mild winter helped reduce demand for power and heat. In some countries, an economic downturn created by inflation and energy costs has led to important energy cuts in the manufacturing sector. However, some countries prolonged the lives of a handful of ageing coal-fired power plants – one of the most polluting power sources of all – in case they were unable to meet power demand.

Many speculated about coal’s return when these prolongation announcements were made – the majority in 2022. But two years later, European coal power generation has been steadily dropping2 and the vast majority of temporary coal plant reactivations were just that – temporary. While a part of the coal and gas demand reduction in 2023 can be attributed to economic downturn, the surge in solar and wind power generation, energy-saving efforts, massive public support schemes and mild winters largely contributed to Europe making it through unscathed.

Austria was one of the few countries that considered a temporary return to coal after proposing to reactivate its Mellach coal plant. But this idea was always unviable due to the cost burden it would have placed on taxpayers. Instead, the country boosted its wind and solar growth to protect its energy security, catapulting Austria into second place among European nations, with the highest energy share in power generation from wind, solar and hydropower in 20233.

Countries such as Spain, which briefly reactivated one coal plant as a short-term solution during the crisis, quickly recognised the long-term benefits of renewable energy. Spain signalled that it will bring its coal phase-out forward by five years with the 2024 closure of its remaining coal plant, As Pontes4. The plant will be replaced by a portfolio of renewable energy projects across the Galician region, including 1 GW of wind power capacity, demonstrating just how much renewables are outperforming fossil fuels on price, energy security, and desirability. Not only does this transformation provide 1,300 clean jobs, but it also supplies affordable energy to the region, setting it up for enduring success.

Similarly, Slovakia has emerged as a frontrunner in Central and Eastern Europe by committing to expedite its coal phase-out by six years, from 2030 to 2024. Not only is this great news for people’s health, the timely coal exit also provides an economic dividend, saving up to EUR 605 million for the Slovak economy5.

The energy crisis brought to light how unstable, costly, and damaging a fossil fuel-based energy system is. Instead of turning toward more coal, many countries made the right decision to rapidly transition toward renewable energy instead. Although some countries persisted with disproportionate emergency coal measures, in most cases, they were not necessary to meet electricity demand.

Some countries have been slow to learn from the crisis and are sabotaging their own energy transition to develop new fossil gas infrastructure. Most recently, three European countries, Italy, Hungary and North Macedonia, postponed their coal phase-out commitments by several years but all still adhere to the 2030 phase-out date.

Those delays stem directly from risky plans to replace coal power plants with gas power generation units. The coal phase-out delays will increase the amount of CO2 emissions the plants will produce in the near term, but they also guarantee a massive release of climate-warming methane, should the fossil gas projects go ahead. As the use of fossil fuels declines because they can’t compete with renewable energy, project developers risk getting stuck with stranded assets.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres said it best: “Only renewables can safeguard our future, close the energy access gap, stabilise prices and ensure energy security.” After the difficult winter of 2022–23, Europe’s power system is in a better place now. But to avert climate catastrophe and keep Europe secure during crises, rapid investments in wind and solar as well as distribution grids and battery storage are the only credible path forward.

Thankfully, Europe is starting to find this path. In 2023, wind and solar made up more than a quarter of the energy mix in the EU as coal and gas saw unprecedented declines, saving consumers EUR 100 billion between 2021 and 2023. Coal remains in long-term decline and more than a fifth of the EU’s coal fleet is closing in the next two years. With wind producing more electricity in the EU than fossil gas for the first time last year, the EU could soon be on its way to ditching fossil fuels for good6.

The pace of phasing out all fossil fuels is gaining much needed momentum on a national level. In December 2023, seven European nations within the Pentalateral Forum – Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Switzerland – have pledged to eliminate carbon emissions from their power systems by 20357. These commitments show a consensus is building for a fossil-free European power sector by 2035. It also echoes similar calls for a 2035 fossil fuel exit in the power sector, when in 2023 G7 countries pledged to “predominantly” decarbonise their electricity sectors by 2035.

There are clear signals that ordinary people across Europe have learnt the painful lesson of fossil fuel dependence as a consequence of the energy crisis. Household solar and heat pump installations have increased in many countries, and over 80 per cent of Europeans surveyed by the European Union in the summer of 2022 said they want massive investments in renewable energy to ensure energy security and independence from Russia, drive down costs, and ward off climate breakdown.

But Europe needs to bring the same enthusiasm for renewable energy to the policy level, where there has not consistently been the same focus on the right solutions. National-level political commitments are pivotal to this process. Setting more ambitious targets for renewable energy deployment and better energy efficiency measures will continue to reduce Europe’s gas demand to a level that negates the need for more gas import infrastructure such as gas pipelines and LNG terminals.

To truly realise Europe’s renewable energy potential, we need concerted action. By prioritising renewables, distribution grids and storage, enhancing energy efficiency measures, and phasing out fossil fuel infrastructure, Europe can not only achieve energy security but also lessen the impact of the climate crisis and reduce reliance on authoritarian regimes. As we move beyond crisis mode, we must leave fossil fuels behind and seize the opportunity to build a cleaner, cost-effective and more resilient renewable energy future for generations to come.

Alexandru Mustaț
Campaigner at Beyond Fossil Fuels

Beyond Fossil Fuels is a collective civil society campaign consisting of over 70 partner organisations committed to ensuring all of Europe’s electricity is generated from fossil-free, renewable energy by 2035. It expands and builds upon the Europe Beyond Coal campaign, and its goal of a coal-free Europe in power and heat by 2030 at the latest.

1https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-outlook-2023
2 https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electricity-review-...
3 https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/news/austria-boasts-europes-se...
4 https://beyondfossilfuels.org/europes-coal-exit/
5 https://www.minzp.sk/iep/publikacie/ekonomicke-analyzy/decarbonization-s...
6 https://ember-climate.org/insights/research/european-electricity-review-...
7 https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/seven-european-countries-pledge-...