Accelerating Renewable Energy: the New EU Directive on Renewables Acceleration Areas

The European Union’s Directive (EU) 2023/2413, dated October 18, 2023, amends previous legislation to promote the use of energy from renewable sources. This directive introduces changes to Directive (EU) 2018/2001, Regulation (EU) 2018/1999, and Directive 98/70/EC, and repeals Council Directive (EU) 2015/652. It acknowledges the need to accelerate the transition to renewable energies due to the climate emergency and the dependence on fossil fuels, which has also resulted in geopolitical vulnerability highlighted by the natural gas crisis.

The new European Directive introduces several significant updates and changes to the legal and regulatory framework for renewable energy and the mitigation of the environmental effects of its implementation. Some highlights include:

Obligations and Scope

• Establishes a shortened process for the authorisation of the repowering of renewable energy plants and a simplified assessment for renewable energy projects considered of superior public interest. It focuses on simplified and rapid authorisation procedures, not exceeding one year, for repowering plants outside renewables acceleration areas, advocating the “no harm” principle.

Impact on Specific Sectors

• Mentions the use of non-biological origin renewable fuels as raw materials in industrial processes and in maritime and air transport.
• Recognises the importance of efficient urban heating and cooling systems that operate with renewable energies.

Training and Labour Development

• Discusses the need for a qualified workforce and cooperation with social interlocutors to develop the necessary skills, especially in the renewable heating and cooling systems sector.

Additional Relevant Considerations

• The Directive highlights the potential of heat pump technology for renewable heating and cooling and suggests shorter authorisation procedures for their installation.
• It addresses the increase in efficiency and capacity in solar installations without expanding occupied space and exempts certain co-located solar energy and storage facilities from environmental impact assessments.
• Introduces a credit mechanism for operators of electric vehicle charging points, allowing the renewable electricity supplied to these points to contribute to the obligations of fuel suppliers.

In this instance, however, we will focus on a particular aspect of the regulation that we are sure will represent a significant change in land planning and management in the coming years, namely the modifications introduced to Directive (EU) 2018/2001 concerning the so-called “renewables acceleration areas” and the necessary cartography for national contributions towards the Union’s global objective for renewable energies by 2030.

Renewables Acceleration Areas and Their Cartography: Articles 15b and 15d

Article 15b (15 ter in the Spanish version) establishes that, by May 21, 2025, Member States must carry out coordinated mapping to identify potential areas for the deployment of renewable energies. These areas must be proportional to the estimated trajectories and the total capacity anticipated by renewable energy technology, ensuring coordination among all relevant authorities.

Article 15c (15 quater in the Spanish version) complements 15b, specifying that, by February 21, 2026, Member States must have adopted plans designating renewable acceleration areas as subsets of the areas identified in 15b. These plans must ensure that the deployment of renewable energies does not have a significant environmental impact, excluding spaces such as Natura 2000 and key areas for biodiversity in accordance with Directive 92/43/EEC and Directive 2009/147/EC. Additionally, they must establish norms for environmental mitigation and ensure consistency with existing biodiversity data.

Therefore, articles 15b and 15c are closely related, where the former sets the base for identifying potential areas, and the latter specifies the designation of zones within those areas for the rapid deployment of renewable technologies, respecting environmental sustainability and the needs for species and habitat protection.

In other words, renewables acceleration areas are zones designated by EU Member States theoretically especially suitable for the development of renewable energy projects. These zones may be located on the surface, subsurface, marine, or in inland waters and are selected for their potential to minimise environmental impact and for their capacity to differentiate between types of renewable technology¹.

Designation Mechanisms and Criteria:

• Member States are responsible for designating these areas and should avoid protected areas as much as possible. Mitigation measures and restoration plans will be considered in their designation.
• Renewables acceleration areas should benefit from accelerated administrative procedures for granting authorisations, including tacit approval in certain cases.
• These areas, along with existing and future plants located outside them, must ensure that renewable energy production is sufficient to meet the contributions stipulated by Member States towards the Union’s global renewable energy goal.
• Plans designating renewables acceleration areas must be made public and periodically reviewed, especially in the context of updating the national integrated energy and climate plans².

Norms and Compliance:

• Specific norms for each area will be based on the renewable technology to be deployed and the identified environmental impact. Adequate mitigation measures must be followed, and competent authorities must explain the assessment made to define each zone.
• Member States can determine the size of the areas, ensuring that their combined size is significant to meet the objectives of the Directive.
• Specific projects in these areas may be exempt from conducting an environmental impact assessment unless Member States require an assessment in their national legislation.

Benefits and Disadvantages:

The benefits of the directive include facilitating and expediting the deployment of renewable energies, which significantly contributes to the Union’s global renewable energy goal. Additionally, it allows the introduction of exemptions from certain evaluation obligations in Union environmental law under specific conditions. On the other hand, the disadvantages could imply an environmental impact if not properly managed. There may also be challenges for integrating land use with other uses of the land, inland waters, and seas.

While the creation of renewables acceleration areas is a proactive strategy to meet renewable energy objectives, it is also essential that the implementation of these plans does not compromise existing environmental protection. Exemption from environmental impact assessment in certain cases could pose a risk if mitigation measures are not adequately monitored.

Directive (EU) 2018/2001, in its current state, offers general environmental protection that should not be weakened by the new exemptions. Furthermore, public participation and transparency are essential to maintain a balance between energy development and environmental conservation, as indicated in Article 15d (15 quinquies in the Spanish version).

With the established transposition deadlines, EU Member States must incorporate the provisions of the new Directive into their national legislation by May 21, 2025. However, exceptions require more immediate action: by July 1, 2024, the provisions related to several specific articles of Directive (EU) 2018/2001, including Article 15e (15 sexies in the Spanish version) and Articles 16 to 16f (16 septies), must be implemented.

At Hub-Terra, our vigilance over this process will be constant. We will be attentive to how Spain, in particular, adapts these regulations to its legal framework, especially given the relevance of ecosystems and biodiversity on the Iberian Peninsula. This monitoring is crucial to ensure that environmental commitments are met without compromising conservation efforts already underway. The active participation of all stakeholders and transparency in the implementation of these measures will be key to achieving energy sustainability and environmental protection goals in a fair and equitable development framework.

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1. See new point 9 bis) in Article 2 of Directive (EU) 2018/2001) ↩︎
2. Presented under Articles 3 and 14 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1999 ↩︎

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DOUE 2023/2413 EN – ES