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Joint letter: keep ‘energy efficiency first’ at heart of EU Climate Law

Joint letter: keep ‘energy efficiency first’ at heart of EU Climate Law

28 Aug 2025

Energy efficiency
©️Unsplash

Industry leaders and associations from the energy efficiency sector, including buildings, construction, and heating and cooling, are committed to securing and delivering an ambitious 2040 climate target.

We believe that a strong EU Climate Law, together with measures enabling industrial competitiveness, will set a clear path to climate neutrality. It will provide European businesses with the stability and predictability needed for projects delivery, large-scale investments in new industrial production capacity, for skills development, research, and innovation.

In this context, we are concerned about the draft compromise text on the EU Climate Law from 31st July, which removes explicit references to the Energy Efficiency First (EE1st) principle.

This principle is a cornerstone of the EU’s climate and energy policy, enshrined both as a general principle and in sector-specific legislation. Removing it from the Climate Law would threaten the ongoing implementation of the energy efficiency regulatory framework and weaken our collective capacity to deliver on our climate objectives.

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