Commission targets 400,000 zero-emission trucks by 2030 under electrification plan

The European Commission is targeting 400,000 zero-emission trucks by 2030 as part of a plan to accelerate electrification across the European economy.

The Electrification Action Plan sets an indicative target for electricity to account for 46% of EU final energy consumption by 2040. Electricity currently represents around 23% of energy demand, a level the Commission says has remained broadly unchanged over the past decade. The 46% objective will be assessed as part of the post-2030 Energy Union package rather than operating as a binding target at this stage.

Brussels estimates that reaching this level of electrification could reduce gas imports by more than 70%, crude oil imports by 40%, and the EU’s fossil fuel import bill by €260 billion annually by 2040.

Transport is one of the sectors targeted for accelerated electrification. Alongside the 400,000 zero-emission truck objective, the Commission plans to review the Clean Vehicles Directive and issue recommendations on demand-side incentives to support the uptake of zero-emission vehicles.

The plan also calls for accelerated deployment of charging infrastructure and points to the Social Climate Fund and EU ETS revenues as possible sources of support for social leasing schemes for electric vehicles. According to the Commission, EV use avoided an estimated €4.1 billion in oil imports in 2025.

A central part of the plan concerns the relative cost of electricity and fossil fuels. The Commission wants electricity prices to remain below 2.5 times the price of gas for households and below twice the gas price for industry. Measures include allowing member states to reduce network charges for certain consumers and addressing differences in taxation between electricity and gas.

Industry is another major focus. The Commission estimates that electrification is already technically feasible for around 60% of industrial energy demand currently reliant on fuels. It intends to support the transition through the revised ETS framework, Industrial Decarbonisation Bank, and a €30 billion ETS Investment Booster.

Sector-specific electrification roadmaps are also planned, alongside a second Innovation Fund auction for electrified and renewable industrial heat.

For buildings, the Commission wants annual heat-pump installations to increase from 2.4 million in 2025 to 4 million by 2030. It estimates that switching from a gas boiler to a heat pump could reduce the average EU household’s heating bill by up to 60%.

The plan nevertheless retains a role for technologies where direct electrification is not considered feasible or cost-effective. The Commission intends to update the EU Hydrogen Strategy to address such industrial applications and continue work with the European Industrial Alliance on Small Modular Reactors, with the first operational European SMR projects targeted for the early 2030s.

The Commission also intends to progressively phase out fossil fuel subsidies as part of the post-2030 Energy Union package.

EU SAF supply reaches 2.79% as imported feedstocks dominate ReFuelEU market

Sustainable aviation fuel accounted for 2.79% of aviation fuel supplied at EU airports in 2025, exceeding the first 2% ReFuelEU Aviation requirement, according to EASA’s first annual assessment covering a full year of the mandate.

Aviation fuel suppliers reported 39.3 million tonnes of fuel supplied to aircraft operators covered by the regulation, including 1.1 million tonnes of SAF. This represents an almost sixfold increase from 2024, when the reported SAF share stood at 0.60%. Around 250,000 tonnes of the SAF reported in 2025 were supplied through voluntary markets rather than being reported as counting towards the regulatory minimum.

The figures may slightly underestimate actual supply. Around 10% of obligated aviation fuel suppliers did not report their SAF volumes, while ReFuelEU reporting does not cover fuel supplied at EU airports falling below the regulation’s threshold for a Union airport.

SAF was supplied at 121 Union airports across all 27 member states, representing 79% of airports covered by the regulation. Twenty-three member states recorded a SAF share of at least 2%.

The Netherlands received 320,000 tonnes, or 29% of all SAF reported, followed by Spain with 152,000 tonnes, Germany with 116,000 tonnes, Italy with 111,000 tonnes, and France with 107,000 tonnes. Amsterdam Schiphol alone accounted for 29% of EU SAF supply, followed by Frankfurt with 8% and Paris Charles de Gaulle with 7%.

EASA’s assessment also highlights the dependence of the emerging market on feedstocks sourced outside Europe. Used cooking oil accounted for 80% of the feedstocks used for SAF supplied in the EU, while category 3 animal fats represented another 11%.

Only around 15% of feedstocks originated within the EU. The remaining 85% came from outside the bloc, with China accounting for 61% of the total, followed by Malaysia with 8% and Indonesia with 5%. For SAF produced from used cooking oil specifically, 73% used UCO originating in China.

This should not, however, be read as meaning that 85% of the SAF itself was imported. EASA says the majority of the 1.1 million tonnes supplied was produced in the EU. Eurostat data show 173,000 tonnes of SAF were imported into the bloc in 2025, equivalent to around 16% of reported EU supply.

The report also finds substantial emissions savings from the fuel supplied. EASA calculates that SAF delivered a weighted-average lifecycle emissions reduction of around 89%, resulting in 3.77 million tonnes of CO₂-equivalent savings in 2025.

The cost differential with conventional aviation fuel nevertheless remains significant. EASA calculated a 2025 reference price of €1,925 per tonne for aviation biofuels, compared with €640 per tonne for conventional aviation fuel. The reference prices are used by member states when determining penalties under ReFuelEU Aviation and for the EU ETS support mechanism for eligible aviation fuels.

EASA says conventional SAF production appears capable of expanding sufficiently to meet the 6% ReFuelEU requirement in 2030. It estimates EU production could reach 1.5 million tonnes based only on currently available capacity, 3.7 million tonnes when facilities under construction and those that have reached final investment decision are included, and 5.5 million tonnes plus 0.6 million tonnes of synthetic fuel when high-credibility project announcements are included.

Synthetic aviation fuel remains less developed. As of June 2026, no commercial-scale synthetic aviation fuel facility in the EU had reached final investment decision, although EASA identifies a wider pipeline of demonstration, pilot, and proposed projects.

The report notes that Germany, Luxembourg, and Austria plan to launch a pilot double-sided auction through the eSAF Early Movers Coalition, with more than €2.1 billion available.

EESC calls for transport rule simplification while warning against deregulation

The European Economic and Social Committee has called for widespread simplification and digitalisation of EU transport rules while warning that efforts to reduce administrative burdens should not weaken safety, social, environmental, or passenger protections.

In an opinion requested by the European Commission, the EESC identifies potential simplification measures across road, rail, aviation, inland waterways, ports, and maritime transport. The opinion was adopted in June and published in the EU Official Journal on 23 September.

The committee argues that the EU’s transport acquis, which it says comprises around 800 directives and regulations including delegated and implementing acts, has become increasingly complex and fragmented. It points to overlapping legislation, cross-references, and divergent national interpretations as sources of administrative burdens and potentially unintentional infringements.

Digitalisation is central to its proposed response. For road transport, the EESC calls for full digitalisation of documents including professional drivers’ licences, certificates of professional competence, journey forms, and CMR consignment notes. It also supports extending the Electronic Freight Transport Information framework to cover vehicle and staff-related documentation and calls for a pan-European network of safe and secure lorry parking areas within the next five to ten years.

In aviation, the committee argues that simplification could support decarbonisation by reducing overlaps between reporting requirements under ReFuelEU Aviation, the EU ETS, the Taxonomy, and the Renewable Energy Directive, proposing a single common reporting procedure. It also calls for greater harmonisation of aviation hand-baggage rules and simpler passenger compensation procedures, including standardised EU refund forms and automatic refunds in defined cases.

Rail is another major focus. The EESC says infrastructure permitting can take up to 20 years and calls for streamlined planning, environmental assessment, and public consultation procedures, alongside joint cross-border permitting bodies with binding timelines.

It also proposes a centralised European ERTMS programme management structure, binding approval timelines for the European Union Agency for Railways and national safety authorities, and a shift in some areas from product-by-product authorisation towards organisational accreditation. The committee argues that the 2026 reform of EU public procurement rules should also simplify rail procurement, update thresholds, promote life-cycle and sustainability criteria, and standardise rolling-stock specifications.

For maritime transport and ports, the opinion backs wider use of the European Maritime Single Window and interoperable inspection systems, while calling for greater digitalisation of seafarer certificates and other documentation.

However, the EESC cautions that simplification should focus on eliminating unnecessary complexity and duplication rather than dismantling existing protections. It argues that competitiveness, worker protections, passenger rights, safety, and environmental objectives should remain integral to the EU transport framework.