EDP believes that the European renewables targets for 2030 should be set at 35%, a more ambitious level than the 27% proposed in the current legislative review in the European Union.

The call for greater ambition as regards the weight of renewable energy in final energy consumption, assumed in a public position taken by other European electric companies, has coincided with COP 23, the United Nations climate summit held in Bonn, Germany.

Without the imposition of a higher quota, the European Union risks losing its lead in tackling climate change, delaying the electrification of transport and air-conditioning systems in buildings, two key sectors for decarbonising economies and creating new jobs. This position was defended by EDP at COP 23, where it participated at the invitation of We Mean Business and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, within the framework of the Marrakech Partnership for Climate Action.

The need to define effective mechanisms to make carbon prices an incentive for the transition to renewables was another theme defended by EDP, which took the opportunity to present the objectives of its climate strategy. The Group intends to achieve a reduction of 75% in specific CO2 emissions by 2030, compared to 2005 levels, and to reach by 2020 more than ¾ of renewable installed capacity.

The 23rd Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP23) was held in Bonn, Germany, under the Presidency of the Fiji Islands.

Of the various issues highlighted by the Presidency as priorities for this COP23, the negotiations on the rules and procedures for the implementation of the Paris Agreement, financing for combating climate change and the collective efforts of countries in achieving the long-term objective of this climate agreement are other topics on the agenda. The Paris Agreement, signed at COP 21 in 2015, aims to keep the global temperature increase below 2°C against pre-industrial levels and to continue efforts to limit this increase to 1.5°C.

In this context, the involvement of non-stake actors that naturally include companies, with their own contributions to this agenda, is increasingly important.

Recognising the relevance of climate change to business and the role that companies, particularly energy companies, should play in decarbonising societies, EDP continues to be an example of good practices in the area of sustainability and climate action and to participate in the Conferences of the Parties of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.