EU unveils escape route from Russian fossil fuels; US$220 billion plan to be completed by 2027

The European Commission on Wednesday unveiled a 210 billion euro (US$220 billion) plan for Europe to end its reliance on Russian fossil fuels by 2027, and to use the pivot away from Moscow to hasten its transition to green energy.

The invasion of Ukraine by Russia, Europe’s top gas supplier, has prompted the European Union to rethink its energy policies amid sharpened concerns of supply shocks. Russia supplies 40 per cent of the bloc’s gas and 27 per cent of its imported oil, and EU countries are struggling to agree sanctions on the latter.

To wean countries off those fuels, Brussels proposed a three-pronged plan: a switch to import more non-Russian gas, a faster roll-out of renewable energy, and more effort to save energy.

The measures include a mix of EU laws, non-binding schemes, and recommendations to governments in the EU’s 27 member countries, who are largely in charge of their national energy policies.

Taken together, Brussels expects them to require 210 billion euros in extra investments by 2027 and 300 billion euros by 2030 on top of those already needed to meet the bloc’s 2030 climate target. Ultimately, it said the investments would slash Europe’s fossil fuel import bill.

Those investments include 86 billion euros for renewable energy and 27 billion for hydrogen infrastructure, 29 billion euros for power grids and 56 billion euros for energy savings and heat pumps.