Europe could do without electricity and hydrogen imports if renewables expansion proceeds as planned – researchers

Europe could cover its electricity and green hydrogen needs with domestic production, but only if renewables expansion proceeds as planned, said researchers from Forschungszentrum Jülich.

The expansion rates of wind power and photovoltaics in Europe must be increased by a factor of four to five compared to current levels in order to achieve the goal of greenhouse gas neutrality by 2050, the institute found. The continent’s northern and southern countries could increasingly become the energy suppliers for the more densely populated and industry-focussed central countries like Germany.

“Northern and southern Europe are creating new markets that will reach a hydrogen export volume of 100 billion euros by 2050,” wrote the institute. Thus, the demand from Germany, which aims for climate neutrality five years earlier than the entire EU, also drives renewables expansion in these countries, said the researchers. They added that the EU's biggest economy would import 35 percent of its electricity needs and 80 percent of the hydrogen it uses by mid-century.

Wind power and solar PV systems will be the main sources of Europe's future energy supply, they said. While nuclear power expansion was in discussion, the researchers found that it would remain uncompetitive in comparison to solar and wind power – also taking into account the storage and increased transport costs of the renewable technologies.

The European Union has introduced the “Green Deal” set of policies to ensure the transition to become a climate-friendly economy, by reducing and eliminating emissions across all polluting sectors, while at the same time preserving economic growth and social cohesion. The union plans to become greenhouse gas neutral by 2050.