Subject: For a H&C Strategy which responds to this fossil fuel crisis
Brussels, 20 April 2026
Dear President von der Leyen,
Dear Commissioner Jørgensen,
We, civil society organisations and industries invested in Europe’s energy transition in heating, are writing following your statement on the situation in the Middle East. We share your concerns and particularly welcome you describing this for what it is: the second fossil fuel crisis this decade. We welcome that measures will be announced next week for coordination, support, and demand reduction.
However, the statement coincided with yet another postponement of the Heating and Cooling Strategy. This is allowing crisis response to block crisis prevention. We worry that the immediate measures may both delay long-term strategic decisions and lack the weight to have a decisive and positive impact.
Homes consume ~40% of Europe’s fossil gas demand.1 Clean heating solutions like heat pumps, solar thermal, district heating and geothermal, as well as energy efficiency can replace this demand. During the previous fossil crisis, clean heat deployment already contributed to over 17% of fossil gas use reduction.2 This progress ended abruptly after 2023. Over 2024, renewables in heating grew by only 0.5%.3 In several countries, they even shrank.
This is the outcome of inconstant policy signals. Both since the last crisis and during the current one, fossil fuels have benefited from more favourable tax and protections than electricity and other clean heat solutions. Citizens and businesses will be wary of repeating the efforts from the previous fossil fuel crisis if they are not shown policy coherence.
That is why we urge the Commission to use the delay of the Heating and Cooling Strategy to raise ambition and durably accelerate the energy transition in heating. This strategy should:
- Deliver on the 2022 REPowerEU goal and Fit For 55 objectives for clean heat deployment, which the EU is currently still missing by half. These are real independence kits, to be promoted in all households.
- Include legislative options to this end. The urgent situation calls for the breaking of taboos, such as finally fixing the electricity to gas price ratio.
- Commit to a dedicated Heating and Cooling Facility within the MFF of €34 billion under the European Competitiveness Fund.
- Stop public financing of fossil gas infrastructure and coal-to-gas conversions.
We hope you will consider these proposals closely and remain at your disposal for any questions.
Yours sincerely,
Annex
1 How is natural gas used in Europe, IEA (2023 data).
2 Calculation based on:
European natural gas imports, Bruegel (2025 data).
REPowerEU – 3 years on, European Commission (retrieved April 2026).
EU Heat Pump Accelerator, EHPA (2023).
3 Small increase in renewable heating & cooling in 2024, Eurostat (2025 data).