Indicator Assessment
Greenhouse gas emission intensity of electricity generation in Europe
The EU’s power generation sector is decarbonising. The greenhouse gas (GHG) emission intensity of power generation is continuously falling across the EU. Supported by EU policies such as the EU Emissions Trading Scheme, the Renewable Energy Directive and legislation addressing air pollutant emissions from industrial installations, there has been a gradual switch from coal to renewable fuels and natural gas, and the efficiency of transformation processes has improved across the sector. By 2019, the GHG emission intensity of electricity generation nearly halved compared with 1990. Were the declining trend of the past decade to continue linearly, EU electricity generation would fully decarbonise by 2050. Additional policies and measures will be needed to enhance progress, as outlined in the European Commission’s proposals to raise the EU greenhouse gas emission reductions target for 2030 from 40 % to 55 % below 1990 levels and to reach climate neutrality by 2050.