Cities are on the front line for enabling governments to meet their commitments under the Paris Agreement. Although cities occupy only 2% of the earth’s surface, they are home to between 50 and 60% of the world’s population (70% by 2050 according to the United Nations), account for two-thirds of the world’s energy consumption and emit 80% of CO₂. As an example, the CO₂ emissions of the city of Berlin are equal to those of Croatia, Jordan or the Dominican Republic. New York’s total annual CO₂ emissions are roughly equivalent to those of Bangladesh. Yet their central role not only for adaptation, but also mitigation, has been recognized lately.

The laws of physics and the geographic realities will prevail over the myths of hydrogen (H₂): it will essentially be delivering carbon-neutral feedstocks to the chemical and steelmaking industries, carbon-neutral fuels to shipping and aviation, and eventually ensuring security in fully decarbonized power grids.

The Biden Administration has so far taken the focus of the Biden candidate on climate issues seriously, especially the commitment made during the campaign of a net zero power system by 2035.

The European Union’s energy infrastructure policy has become obsolete with the adoption of both the Green Deal and the 2050 climate neutrality target. The ongoing review of the regulation on Trans-European Energy Networks (TEN-E) should lead to an-depth discussion on Europe’s energy transition strategy.

Japan has been steadfastly promoting the development of its hydrogen economy at all levels: political, diplomatic, economic and industrial. It is yet to be seen if this excitement can be turned into a credible, cost-effective and large scale deployment.

The European Union (EU) is committed to reach climate neutrality by 2050. Similarly, Norway aims to create a zero-emission society by that same year. 

Europe’s energy policy is commonly defined by three axes of equal importance: security of supplies, competitiveness and sustainable development. The European Commission is mandated to develop the policy tools that allow the implementation of this common policy. Early on, challenges arose from the trade-offs to be made not only between these three pillars but also between a common European policy and national approaches. The European Commission has always had to struggle in attempting to keep a balanced line.