2021-2022 Monitoring Report of the Energy Transition and Climate Change Plan

This first Monitoring Report of the Energy Transition and Climate Change Plan seeks to assess its degree of progress, analyse any deviations and propose corrective measures.

Work is underway on 91% of the actions planned for 2024, with a degree of execution of 49%

The report highlights that appropriate progress is being made in integrating energy, mitigation and adaptation to the climate change of the Basque Country. The degree of progress in the 15 initiatives proposed in the Plan stands at 49%, which indicates that nearly half of the planned work has been achieved in the year and a half that the Plan has been underway. Therefore, the initiatives are expected to be fully implemented by 2024.

Apart from helping to address the challenge of climate change, the actions envisaged in the Plan will bolster certain investments in mitigation and adaptation, thus contributing to the economic development of the Basque Country. The Plan is expected to boost GDP by nearly €160 million a year and will lead to the creation of over 2000 jobs a year.

The report stresses that the Basque Country is making decisive steps in the goal to reduce total GHG emissions by 30% and in the resilience actions, but it notes that the renewables target (achieve a share of 20%) had even suffered a setback in the analysed period. The reason for the setback was the circumstantial increase in electricity generation by combined cycle power plants and the drop in hydroelectric generation and the use of biofuels.

As regards climate change adaptation, the Basque Country is one of the regions selected to be part of the European Union's Adaptation to Climate Change Mission. The Basque Country is thus recognised as being in a position to be a benchmark and share its experience with other European regions; furthermore, it is confirmed as a region committed to and fully onboard with addressing the climate emergency challenge that we are facing as society.

The initiatives with the lowest level of fulfilment and which will require greatest impetus over the coming 2 years are: Driving the energy retrofitting of building and nature-based solutions as a source of innovation for the resilience of the municipalities.

Examples of key actions included in the plan:

• Energy Transition and Climate Change Bill currently making its way through parliament.
• Renewable Energy Sectoral Territorial Plan (PTS): Initial version determining the areas where renewable energy facilities can be installed.
• Life IP Urbanklima 2050 project: Deployment of different nature-based solutions, along with analysis and applying the coastal climate risk.
• EKIOLA initiative: Promoting the figure of the energy communities, by means of photovoltaic solar generation, by different supramunicipal districts. Twelve EKIOLAS between 11 consumption cooperatives and 1 services cooperative have so far been set up.
• Risk and vulnerability assessment of rising sea level and swell, and guidelines to adapt to Climate Change and generate cartography published in Geoeuskadi.
• “Erreminta-Gida”: preparation of Energy and Climate Plans at local councils. Local climate innovation projects have also been supported.