One year has passed since the report by former Italian prime minister Mario Draghi was published. The report makes it crystal clear: accelerating home-grown renewable generation and articulating a genuine European energy union are the most effective levers to drive down energy prices and enhance European industrial competitiveness.
A number of initiatives are underway: the EU’s Affordable Energy Action Plan supports PPAs and CfDs to stabilise renewable energy revenues, a new state aid framework allows targeted industry subsidies linked to decarbonisation, a European Grid Package, expected by the end of 2025, and the Energy Union Task Force, launched in June 2025, aims to coordinate cross-border system development and advance electricity market integration.
And yet the question remains: will these measures be enough to achieve the ambitious goals set out in Draghi’s report? Can clean energy and decarbonisation truly become engines of competitiveness across Europe? At a time of geopolitical and market instability, the EU cannot afford incremental steps alone—it needs a bold, transformative agenda.
In the context of Energy Day at COP30, this panel provides an ideal platform to gather momentum for the coming months, which will be decisive for building a genuine European Energy Union—strengthening competitiveness, accelerating the clean energy transition, and enhancing energy security across the continent.
Objectives
- Assess progress made since the publication of the Draghi Report, evaluating how current EU initiatives such as the Affordable Energy Action Plan, the new state aid framework, and the forthcoming European Grid Package contribute to the creation of a genuine European Energy Union.
- Analyse the effectiveness of ongoing policies and instruments in driving renewable energy deployment, stabilising energy prices, and enhancing industrial competitiveness across the EU.
- Identify remaining gaps and challenges that hinder the realisation of an integrated, secure, and decarbonised European energy system capable of responding to geopolitical and market uncertainties.
- Foster dialogue on a transformative agenda for Europe’s energy future, highlighting how clean energy, innovation, and cross-border cooperation can jointly strengthen competitiveness, security, and sustainability across the continent.
Moderator
Moderator details coming soon.
Speakers
- Ole Thonke, Climate Ambassador of Denmark
- Ricardo Gorini, head of Remap at IRENA
- Carsten Rothballer, Europe Head of Sustainable Energy Systems at ICLEI
- Miguel Rodrigo, Director of Spain’s Energy Agency