EU’s break from Russian energy is moving too slowly, auditors say

EU efforts to end dependence on Russian energy are progressing more slowly than expected, Yle reports, citing the European Court of Auditors, the body that oversees EU financial management. EU funding has played only a minor role in reducing reliance on Russian oil and gas, it said.

The European Commission launched the REPowerEU plan in spring 2022 to tackle the EU’s dependence on Russian energy. The plan aims to phase out fossil fuels imported from Russia while supporting the transition to clean energy. The Court of Auditors said progress on the plan has stalled.

EU countries have committed about 54 billion euros to REPowerEU, compared with an estimated 300 billion euros in additional investment needed by 2030 under the original plan.

“We must learn from the current situation, as new geopolitical tensions and their impact on energy markets highlight the need to accelerate the diversification of energy sources and prevent excessive dependence on a single supplier in the future,” said Mihails Kozlovs, a member of the European Court of Auditors. He called for coordinated action to speed up the plan.

Renewable energy capacity remains far below target

Auditors said some important projects had advanced within the EU, but that efforts to accelerate the transition to clean energy by increasing renewable energy capacity had produced only limited results. Renewable energy production capacity remains low and “far below” the target of 103 gigawatts, the Court of Auditors said.

EU sanctions have significantly reduced oil imports from Russia, but it remains unclear how much Russian oil has entered the EU through third countries or on tankers belonging to the so-called shadow fleet.

Gas imports from Russia have also declined. However, the auditors noted that some EU countries imported more Russian gas in 2024 than they did before the war in Ukraine began.