A fair heating transition means making sure the households who need support the most aren’t left behind: Millions of households across Europe are still struggling to afford heating their homes, while remaining locked into polluting heating systems. As ETS2 introduces a carbon price on emissions from buildings, the Social Climate Fund provides an opportunity to invest in home renovation and clean heating solutions for vulnerable households. This report explores how National Social Climate Plans can make that opportunity deliver a cleaner, fairer and more affordable heating transition.
Making the clean heating transition fair means ensuring that the households most affected by polluting heating systems are not left behind. As the EU Emissions Trading System 2 (ETS2) introduces a carbon price on fossil fuels used in buildings and transport, well-targeted public investment will be essential to prevent rising costs from deepening energy poverty. The Social Climate Fund, implemented through National Social Climate Plans (NSCPs), will play a key role in helping vulnerable households switch to clean, affordable heating.
This latest report from BPIE report analyses how to switch to clean and renewable heating in buildings occupied by vulnerable households by examining:
- the investment needed to deliver clean and renewable heating, and the benefits it brings
- how well National Social Climate Plans (NSCPs) support this transition
- best practices for financing the transition
- recommendations for more effective use of NSCPs and ETS2 revenues.
By focusing on five countries – Bulgaria, Germany, Italy, Poland and Romania – the report provides evidence to inform policy and funding decisions that can accelerate a clean and fair heating transition across Europe. Most countries covered by the study require significant capital investment (around EUR 200/m²) to deliver clean and renewable heating. The findings also show that reducing energy bills requires a comprehensive approach that combines building renovation with the deployment of clean heating technologies.
Deploying optimal energy efficiency packages could substantially reduce delivered energy demand, air pollution, running costs and greenhouse gas emissions across the five Member States analysed. National Social Climate Plans offer a valuable opportunity to better support vulnerable households through targeted financial support, the strategic use of ETS2 revenues and investment in local one-stop shops that can help households access clean heating solutions.