EU Clears French, Danish Energy Schemes

The European Commission on Monday cleared four renewable energy support schemes in France, as well as Danish support for energy intensive users, saying they were in line with European Union rules on state aid. The commission said French schemes to aid geothermal energy, small biogas and hydraulic installations and wind energy projects which applied for support in 2016, would help France achieve its climate targets while keeping market distortions to a minimum, Reuters reported. Separately, the commission, which acts as the competition supervisor for the EU, cleared a Danish scheme to compensate more energy intensive users for a levy which supports renewable energy projects. Earlier this month, the European Environment Agency (EEA) said that EU countries are on track to meet their 2020 targets for renewable energy and emissions cuts but could fall short of ambitious longer-term goals. The bloc’s 2020 target calls for 20% of gross final energy consumption to come from renewable sources.