(28 February 2013) – A report commissioned by Friends of the Earth Europe and the Climate Action Network shows that the EU could benefit from €200 billion net savings per year by 2020 providing it gets on track to meeting its stated 20% by 2020 energy savings target.
The report, “Saving energy: bringing down Europe’s energy prices for 2020 and beyond”, also looks to 2030 and finds that net savings in the order of €250 billion per year could be achieved if the EU reduces its energy use by roughly 35% below current levels by 2030.
The study draws attention to the fact that energy savings do not only result in direct cost savings, but have a multiplier effect due to their downward effect on energy prices. The result is that real cost savings from exploiting the EU’s cost-effective energy savings potential are likely to be considerably higher than figures commonly cited.