The European Commission says it wants to make it easier to approve renewable energy projects as part of efforts to tackle the bloc’s ongoing energy crisis in a proposal announced on Wednesday.
Renewable energy is cheaper, cleaner and “independent of Russian manipulation,” EU Climate Commissioner, Frans Timmermans, said in a statement.
Temporary and emergency powers, valid for one year would see energy plants involving renewable energy assume overriding public interest in the permitting process.
Installations of solar plants on artificial structures including rooftops are to be approved within one month with exemptions granted from certain environmental assessments.
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Heat pumps, meanwhile, are to be approved within three months in the commission’s proposals.
When expanding or modernising existing renewable energy facilities, like older wind farms, the approval process including the environmental assessments, is to take place within six months.
The commission said rising energy prices in the EU prompted the proposal and followed on from previous policies to fast-track approvals in the bloc’s strategy to break away from Russian energy imports.
Renewable energy production was a major component of the commission’s plans unveiled in May to end the bloc’s dependence on Russian fossil fuels against the backdrop of the Ukraine war.
EU member states must approve the powers before their entry into force.
